Thomas Darlington, an innovator in the cranberry industry, was 84
Thomas Darlington, an innovator in the cranberry industry, was 84
It was an ironic twist of fate that brought Thomas Darlington into the cranberry and blueberry industries.
Mr. Darlington was an engineer by trade and was working in 1950 for the Westinghouse Co. designing jet engines when his brother Joseph was killed in a plane crash.
Mr. Darlington was expected to take his brother's place running the family's cranberry and blueberry operation, Joseph J. White Inc., and although he was not a farmer, he immediately went to work creating several pieces of machinery that would help make harvesting the fruits easier.
One of those pieces of machinery, which resembles a lawnmower and is known as the Darlington Harvester, was patented in the early 1950s and is still used today for dry-harvesting fresh cranberries.
Mr. Darlington, whose ideas and equipment helped revolutionize mechanized cranberry and blueberry farming, died Aug. 22 from an apparent heart attack at the age of 84.
"My dad was interested in people, but he was first and foremost an engineer and was interested in how things worked," said Joe Darlington, who is J.J. White's president and a fifth-generation member of the family-owned-and- operated firm that was founded in 1857. "He was a devoted father and husband, and was intelligent and down-to-earth."
Joe Darlington said that his father graduated from Swarthmore College with an engineering degree, and he earned a doctorate in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.
Mr. Darlington ran the Whitesbog, NJ-based firm, which is a member of the Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. cooperative, until he began to retire gradually after being seriously injured when he was hit by a car while riding his bicycle in 1986.
After he fully retired in the mid-1990s, Joe Darlington said that his father became involved in "100 other hobbies," including building and flying ultra- light airplanes. He was also very interested in flying radio-controlled helicopters, which Joe Darlington said was his "chief passion" in his last few years.
Joe Darlington said that his father was one of the original members of the board of New Jersey's Pinelands Commission, which developed a land-use management plan for the ecologically sensitive area that covers some 1.1 million acres in seven of the state's southern counties. He also served on the board of directors of Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. and the Audubon Society, and he "was sought after for his wide-ranging experience and knowledge because he worked well with people."
In addition to Joe Darlington, Mr. Darlington is survived by his wife, Virginia; another son, Mark; daughters Katharine and Anne; and six grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to Whitesbog Preservation Trust, 120-34 Whitesbog Road, Browns Mills, NJ, 08015.
Mr. Darlington was an engineer by trade and was working in 1950 for the Westinghouse Co. designing jet engines when his brother Joseph was killed in a plane crash.
Mr. Darlington was expected to take his brother's place running the family's cranberry and blueberry operation, Joseph J. White Inc., and although he was not a farmer, he immediately went to work creating several pieces of machinery that would help make harvesting the fruits easier.
One of those pieces of machinery, which resembles a lawnmower and is known as the Darlington Harvester, was patented in the early 1950s and is still used today for dry-harvesting fresh cranberries.
Mr. Darlington, whose ideas and equipment helped revolutionize mechanized cranberry and blueberry farming, died Aug. 22 from an apparent heart attack at the age of 84.
"My dad was interested in people, but he was first and foremost an engineer and was interested in how things worked," said Joe Darlington, who is J.J. White's president and a fifth-generation member of the family-owned-and- operated firm that was founded in 1857. "He was a devoted father and husband, and was intelligent and down-to-earth."
Joe Darlington said that his father graduated from Swarthmore College with an engineering degree, and he earned a doctorate in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.
Mr. Darlington ran the Whitesbog, NJ-based firm, which is a member of the Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. cooperative, until he began to retire gradually after being seriously injured when he was hit by a car while riding his bicycle in 1986.
After he fully retired in the mid-1990s, Joe Darlington said that his father became involved in "100 other hobbies," including building and flying ultra- light airplanes. He was also very interested in flying radio-controlled helicopters, which Joe Darlington said was his "chief passion" in his last few years.
Joe Darlington said that his father was one of the original members of the board of New Jersey's Pinelands Commission, which developed a land-use management plan for the ecologically sensitive area that covers some 1.1 million acres in seven of the state's southern counties. He also served on the board of directors of Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. and the Audubon Society, and he "was sought after for his wide-ranging experience and knowledge because he worked well with people."
In addition to Joe Darlington, Mr. Darlington is survived by his wife, Virginia; another son, Mark; daughters Katharine and Anne; and six grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to Whitesbog Preservation Trust, 120-34 Whitesbog Road, Browns Mills, NJ, 08015.
