George Patterson died at his home in Palo Alto on Monday, October 29, 2018.  He was 76 years old. George, a fourth generation Californian, was the son of William Donald Patterson, Jr. and Dorothy Elizabeth Wilcox.  George's great-grandfather, George Washington Patterson, came to California from Indiana in search of gold in 1849 and shortly thereafter turned to farming.  Today the Patterson house and land, Ardenwood, is an historic working farm operated by the East Bay Regional Park District in Fremont.  George was also a descendent of Abner and Lucy Wilcox, missionary teachers, who settled on the island of Kauai in 1846.

George was active with the Society of California Pioneers for thirty-two years and served as Vice President, Director, and Governor.   He was a loyal volunteer and ardent supporter of the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto.  He was also a member of the California Historical Radio Society As his cousin, Bruce Patterson, wrote:  "George was one of a kind.  His unbounded inquisitiveness was as fascinating as it was contagious.  The world was his oyster and over the years, he came it's pearl.  His life was a long journey for answers to questions and the desire to experience life at its fullest.  He had friends from all over the world whom he loved and they gave back that love in equal measure.  His zest for life took him to exotic places and, like that oyster's grain of sand, he took on layers of experience and wisdom, which slowly grew with the passage of time making him the unique person we knew and loved.  George was truly an adventurer traveler, historian, a gentle man and a gentleman."  Although George was a world traveler, his lifelong residence was the mid-peninsula,  Atherton and later Palo Alto.  George is survived by his brothers, William "Bill" D. Patterson III, (wife Doris) of Sacramento, Wilcox "Wil" (wife Sandy) Portola Valley, sisters, Grace Green (husband Gerald), Wilsonville, Oregon, and Eden Salomon, Redwood City as well as three nieces and three nephews.

A memorial service will be held at Ardenwood on Sunday March 10, 2019 at 2pm.  In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Society of California Pioneers or the Museum of American Heritage.