Edmund Bacon Fitzgerald

Edmund Bacon Fitzgerald of Nashville died on the 28th of August 2013 at the age of 87.

Born in Milwaukee, WI to Mr. & Mrs. Edmund Fitzgerald, he attended the Milwaukee Country Day School, the Deerfield Academy, and the University of Michigan. He served to Captain in the USMC (1943-46 & 1950-52). He is predeceased by his wife of 65 Years, Elizabeth McKee Christensen Fitzgerald. He is survived by his four children: Karen (Carl) Lindsay of Denver, CO, Kathleen (Peter) Picoli of Long Island, NY, E. Greer (Pamela) Fitzgerald of Manitowish Waters, WI, and Rogers C. (Karen) Fitzgerald of Delavor, NSW, Australia. He is also survived by nine grandchildren, brother-in-law, Thor (Joanne) Christensen, sister-in-law, Eugenie Ebert, brother-in-law, Richard Cutler.

From 1990 until 2008, he was a professor on the faculty of the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. During the decade of the 1980’s, he was Chairman and CEO of Northern Telecom, Ltd., formerly Nortel Networks Corp. Prior to joining Nortel; he was for 15 years, the CEO of Cutler-Hammer, Inc. of Milwaukee, WI. In 1970, he was a co-founder of the Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club, and served as a General Partner of the Club until 1982. Also during the 1970’s, he was a member of the Executive Council of Major League Baseball, and Chairman of its Player Relations Committee. During the 1980’s, he served on President Reagan’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee, and prior to that was Vice Chairman of the Industry Advisory Council to the U.S. Department of Defense. He was also a former President of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association. He was a life trustee and former Chairman of the U.S. Committee for Economic Development, and also a director of the Business Council on National Issues in Ottawa, Canada for four years. In 1997, he was decorated by the Majesty the Emperor of Japan with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold & Silver Star, in recognition of his long devotion to improving trade relations between the U.S. and Japan. He also served for many years on the Korea U.S. Wisemen Council dedicated to improving national security and economic development on the Korean Peninsula. He was the author of three books.

Burial shall be in the Fitzgerald family plot in the Forest Home Cemetery in Milwaukee, WI.

In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to St. George’s Episcopal Church of Nashville, 4715 Harding Pike, Nashville, TN 37205; Deerfield Academy, 7 Boyden Lane, Deerfield, MA 01342; or the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University, 401 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37203.

For additional obituary information, please see the Friday, August 30, 2013 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel obituary “Fitzgerald had a hand in bringing Brewers” by Jan Uebelherr and Bill Glauber