2008
George D. Cowie Jr., 87, who grew up in Washington and returned to the area in 1989 after a career as an automotive engineer
in Michigan, died of diabetes and ischemic heart disease Nov. 2 in Gaithersburg at Asbury Methodist Village's Wilson Health
Care Center.
Mr. Cowie worked most of his career in Detroit and surrounding areas. He was an engineer at the Chrysler Corp. and the
DeLorean Motor Co. and a senior engineer with the Army's Tank-Automotive Command in Warren, Mich. He also was a
consultant for the Oshkosh Truck Corp. He received the Army's Meritorious Civilian Service Award in 1988.
He was born in Syracuse, N.Y., and graduated from the District's Wilson High School in 1938. He graduated from what is now
Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y., and served as an Army captain in Europe during World War II. He received a master's
degree in automotive engineering from the Chrysler Institute of Engineering in Highland Park, Mich., in 1948; a law degree from
the Detroit College of Law in 1951; and a master's degree in business administration from Michigan State University in 1974.
After retiring, he became active in the Crestwood Village retirement community in Frederick. In 2005, he moved to Potomac. He
enjoyed the Washington National Opera.
His wife of 54 years, Elsie Elizabeth Swan Cowie, died in 2002.
Survivors include a daughter, Catherine C. Cowie of Potomac; a sister; and a granddaughter.
-- Patricia Sullivan