Henry W. Bosworth Jr., 84, of Braintree, founder and publisher of The Quincy Sun, died Feb. 7 at Quincy Medical Center.
Born in Boston and raised in Quincy, he was educated in Quincy public schools. He graduated from Quincy High School, class of 1942, and later attended Boston University’s evening division.
He lived in Braintree for 57 years.
A Navy veteran of World War II, he served from 1942 to 1946. Most of his service was aboard the destroyer, USS Cogswell, which was commissioned in Boston in 1943. He received the Asiatic Pacific Ribbon with 10 stars and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with two stars.
His journalism career began his senior year at Quincy High School. He became the high school correspondent for The Patriot Ledger, writing schoolboy sports. After serving in the war, he returned to the Ledger. Highlights during his Ledger career included heading up the coverage of the Domenic Bonomi murder trial, which won the Ledger a Pulitzer Prize nomination.
In 1956, he joined the Boston Traveler and covered the Brink’s Robbery trial in 1956 and John F. Kennedy’s presidential election in 1960. He wrote the column “Inside South Shore.” One of those columns featured Francis X., the lonely “Little Boy Blue” at the Lakeville Sanitarium with muscular dystrophy who wanted “four or six” birthday cards for his ninth birthday in October 1957. The column inspired a Jerry Lewis television program that turned out to be the forerunner of the Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy Telethon.
Mr. Bosworth left the Boston Traveler in September 1968 to start The Quincy Sun as a community weekly newspaper.
Active in many local organizations, he was a supporter of numerous civic causes. He was a member of the Cyril P. Morrisette American Legion Post of Quincy, the Quincy Sons of Italy, Quincy Lodge of Elks, Quincy-North Quincy Football Hall of Fame and the Veterans Stadium Committee, which was instrumental in erecting lights at the city’s stadium. For many years he served as co-chairman of the Quincy-South Shore Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon. The telethon raised over $1 million for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Mr. Bosworth was recognized by numerous community groups, including the Quincy Historical Society, American Red Cross, Beechwood on the Bay, United Way, Veterans of Foreign Wars, South Shore YMCA, Quincy Lodge of Elks, Quincy Education Association and the Quincy School-Community Partnership. He was also honored as the recipient of the James R. McIntyre Humanitarian Award and the Quincy Jewish War Veterans Citizen of the Year.
Mr. Bosworth was a longtime member of the Quincy Center Business and Professional Association and served on the Quincy Salvation Army advisory board. During the past few holiday seasons, he organized a Salvation Army kettle drive manned by community leaders.
In 1995, he received an honorary degree from Quincy College for his contributions to journalism.
He was a longtime parishioner at St. John the Baptist Church, Quincy.
He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Dorothy M. (Robinson) Bosworth; four daughters, Gail A. Happel and her husband, Fred, of Weymouth, Linda M. Harrison and her husband, Ben, of Randolph, Donna J. Gray and her husband, David, of Pembroke, and Dorothy L. Newman, of Quincy; a son, Robert H. Bosworth and his wife, Amy, of Halifax; his grandchildren, Fred Happel and his wife, Julie, of Weymouth, James Happel and his wife, Wendy, of Abington, Brian Harrison, of Randolph, Amy Vickery and her husband, Jason, of Quincy, Michelle Wright and her husband, Joseph, of Pembroke, Kimberly Gray, of Weymouth, Kellie Newman and Jay Bosworth Newman, both of Quincy, and Lindsay Bosworth of Duxbury; three great-grandchildren, Michael Happel, Sean Happel and Caitlin Happel; a brother, Richard Bosworth and his wife, Irene, of Weymouth; and many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.
He was the son of the late Henry W. Bosworth Sr. and Ellen (Downes) Bosworth, and brother of the late Robert H. Bosworth and Vera Thomas.
A funeral Mass was celebrated in St. John the Baptist Church, Quincy, on Feb. 12. Burial with military honors was in Blue Hill Cemetery, Braintree.
Donations may be made to The Salvation Army, Quincy Chapter, 6 Baxter St., Quincy, MA 02169 or another charity.