In Memoriam

William Ralston
1948-2025

COOPERSTOWN—William “Bill” Ralston was born on November 29, 1948 to John Ralston and Lois Van De Walle Ralston and grew up in Irondequoit, near Rochester, New York. He passed away suddenly on July 5, 2025 at his house just outside Cooperstown, while doing one of the things he loved best—working on his beloved wilderness property. He spent his final hours raking up fresh grass for his treasured compost pile. He was 76 years old.

Bill graduated from Wittenberg University with a degree in chemistry and went on to Colgate University to earn a graduate teaching degree, but soon discovered his real passion of woodworking and furniture making. He moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where he apprenticed under a master craftsman. In 1979, he opened his first shop, Ralston Furniture Reproductions, in Cherry Valley. He focused on American 18th-century furniture. Later, he moved his shop to Cooperstown, first located for years on Pioneer Street, and subsequently outside the village on Route 28—spaces he shared with stair builder James Dean.

Bill developed an appreciation for the Art Deco aesthetic and designed and created pieces reflecting this taste, most recently a cocktail tray featured in his final exhibition this spring. He was widely recognized for his meticulous work and dedication to excellence in his craft. Over the years he developed and maintained a wide range of customers and clients, from local families and collectors to religious clerics and national historic sites.

Bill’s interests were numerous and varied. He was an avid reader on many topics, at one point devoting himself to reading “The New Yorker” magazine cover-to-cover. He seemed to possess an encyclopedic retention of the articles he carefully set aside to read when time permitted—especially the film reviews. He was also active in town and civic affairs, with a particular interest in conservation. Bill was especially involved in Friends of the Parks; as a fervent ice skater, he was instrumental in urging the Village of Cooperstown to maintain the skating rink in Badger Park for the pleasure of all area residents.

Bill loved to canoe and was a veteran of many strenuous canoe races, often leading a team on the annual 72-mile General Clinton Memorial Day race down the Susquehanna River. He taught himself to build and play the hammered dulcimer, and more recently became a skilled bridge player, playing weekly with friends right up until his death. One of his most endearing passions was taking children and adults on a walk that conveyed the size of the solar system. He used a bowling ball as a model of the sun and a peppercorn as a model of the earth, and then paced out distances to scale on local railroad tracks. Although Bill would never call himself a good cook, he was a determined baker; friends and family were often the beneficiaries of homemade apple pies and strawberry shortcake. He was known for his salads that were loaded with shredded carrots, his contribution to the countless potluck dinners he attended over the years in Cooperstown.

Always active, his recent travels included trips exploring California and the West Coast with his cherished son, Dan. This spring, Bill completed a two week rafting trip down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. He recounted the journey vividly, as if he were still there paddling and looking up at the canyon walls, although he critiqued the trip as being too luxurious for his taste. At the time of his death he was planning a canoe trip in the far Northwest Territories with two long-time friends and fellow paddlers.

Bill was predeceased by his wife, Sarah Hall. He is survived by his dear son, Daniel Ralston, who is earning a PhD in mathematics at the University of California in Santa Barbara, and his older sister, Martha Wales, in Manchester, Massachusetts.