Fairleigh Stanton Dickinson Jr. (December 9, 1919 – October 12, 1996) was an American Republican Party politician who served as a member of the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...

from 1968 to 1971. Stout, David
"Fairleigh S. Dickinson Jr., 76, Who Helped Save the Meadowlands"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', October 17, 1996. Accessed October 14, 2007.

Early life and education

He was born in Rutherford, the son of

Fairleigh S. Dickinson Colonel Fairleigh Stanton Dickinson Sr. (August 22, 1866 – June 23, 1948) was an American businessman who was the co-founder of the Fortune 500 medical technology company Becton Dickinson and the named benefactor of Fairleigh Dickinson Univ ...

and Grace Smith Dickinson (1887–1973). A 1937 graduate of

Montclair Kimberley Academy Montclair Kimberley Academy (MKA) is a co-educational private school for students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade located in Montclair, New Jersey, Montclair in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. ...

, Dickinson was recognized by the school in 1965 with its Outstanding Alumnus Award. Dickinson graduated from

New York Military Academy New York Military Academy (NYMA) is a Private school, private, College-preparatory school, college preparatory, boarding school in Cornwall, New York, and one of the oldest List of United States military schools and academies, military schools i ...

and from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

. He served as a lieutenant commander in the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was able to draw upon his Coast Guard experience when he and his wife were forced into a lifeboat when the cruise liner Prinsendam caught fire and sank while traversing the

Gulf of Alaska The Gulf of Alaska ( Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the ...

in October 1980. Dickinson sponsored the 1969 legislation that created the

Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC; formerly the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission) was a regional zoning, planning and regulatory agency in northern New Jersey. Its founding mandates were to protect the delicate balance of ...

Career

Dickinson became a trustee of

Fairleigh Dickinson University Fairleigh Dickinson University () is a private university with its main campuses in New Jersey, located in Madison / Florham Park and in Teaneck / Hackensack. Founded in 1942, Fairleigh Dickinson University offers more than 100 degree prog ...

in 1948 and was named its chairman in 1968, following in the footsteps of his father, Fairleigh S. Dickinson, who was co-founder of

Becton Dickinson Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD; also Becton Dickinson or Becton) is an American multinational medical technology company that manufactures and sells medical devices, instrument systems, and reagents. BD also provides consulting and analytic ...

, a manufacturer of medical products, and of Fairleigh Dickinson University. Dickinson also followed his father in commerce, as president of Becton Dickinson in 1948 and chairman in 1972. He had homes on

Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard, often simply called the Vineyard, is an island in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, lying just south of Cape Cod. It is known for being a popular, affluent summer colony, and includes the smaller peninsula Chappaquiddick Isla ...

and in

Ridgewood, New Jersey Ridgewood is a Village (New Jersey), village in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Ridgewood is a suburban commuter town, bedroom community of New York City, located approximately northwest of Midtown M ...

and was at his home on Martha's Vineyard when he became sick and later died at

Brigham and Women's Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH or The Brigham) is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts General Hospital, it is one of the two ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. As a founding board member of Vineyard Environmental Research, Institute (VERI), Dickinson played an active role in saving three Martha's Vineyard lighthouses (

Gay Head Light Gay Head Light is a historic lighthouse located on Martha's Vineyard westernmost point off of Lighthouse Road in Aquinnah, Massachusetts. History 1796–1838 – Gay Head Light – the first lighthouse on Martha's Vineyard When the first Cong ...

, East Chop Light, and Edgartown Harbor Light) from being torn down in the early 1980s. The Edgartown Harbor Light, which is located near the Dickinsons' Martha's Vineyard home, is highly visible from the Dickinsons' living room and ocean-side deck, and always held a special interest to Dickinson and his family. In 1987 Dickinson became Lighthouse Keeper to the Edgartown Harbor Light. Dickinson was a co-founder of Vineyard Environmental Research, Inst. Edgartown Harbor Light He married Betty Harrington (1920-2010) in 1946, and they had one son and two daughters; Ann, of Ridgewood, New Jersey, and Tracy, of Park Ridge, New Jersey. In 1969, his son, Fairleigh S. Dickinson III, died of a drug overdose in his room at Columbia University, where he was a freshman. Ann's son is the Broadway actor David Turner (b. 1974).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickinson, Fairleigh Jr. 1919 births 1996 deaths BD (company) people Montclair Kimberley Academy alumni Republican Party New Jersey state senators New York Military Academy alumni People from Martha's Vineyard People from Ridgewood, New Jersey Businesspeople from Bergen County, New Jersey People from Rutherford, New Jersey Politicians from Bergen County, New Jersey Williams College alumni American lighthouse keepers 20th-century members of the New Jersey Legislature