William Claudius Portman ’45

William Claudius Portman ’45 of Cincinnati, Ohio, died August 31, 2010. He was inducted into the Army in 1943 and then returned for graduation from Tuck School. He then learned about big business with Proctor & Gamble and Clark Equipment Co. He started Portman Equipment Co. in Cincinnati in 1960 as the dealer for Clark with six people from its Cleveland office. Under his direction that grew to nearly 400 people distributing lift trucks in a 50-county area from five locations. He was chairman emeritus at the time of his death. He was named to the board of trustees of the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and chair of the region’s United Way. Bill served the College as Cincinnati club president (1950-2010) and leadership agent (1983-2002). He spent much time backpacking, flying, hunting, fishing and playing tennis and continued a love of skiing he had learned at Dartmouth. He married his wife, Joan, who is deceased, in 1952. They are survived by children William, Tu’81, Robert ’78 and Virginia.