Peter Macfarlane Keir ’41

Peter Macfarlane Keir ’41 died June 17 at his home in the Hollin Hills community of Fairfax County, Virginia. Peter was an athlete and a scholar, an intellectual and a “regular guy,” a man whose warmth, grace, compassion, and sense of humor were valued by multiple generations of family, friends, and colleagues. Peter grew up in Hanover, where his father was a professor of economics at the College. At Dartmouth Peter majored in government, played varsity hockey, earned the Barrett Cup for all-around achievement, and was a member of Casque & Gauntlet, Green Key, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and Palaeopitus. As an ensign in the Navy, he served in photographic intelligence in both the European and Pacific theaters during the war. He then earned a master’s from Harvard and became an economics lecturer at Amherst College. Peter began working at the Federal Reserve in 1953 in the division of research and statistics, and retired in 1981 as special assistant to the board in the office of the staff director for monetary policy. A career highlight was a month-long trip he took in 1972 to consult with other central bank officials in Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, Pakistan, Lebanon, Italy, and England. He then worked for another eight years as an economic and monetary policy analyst for the American Council of Life Insurance in Washington, D.C. He is survived by children Ellen, Bruce, and David and six grandchildren. He was predeceased by his former wife, Audrey, and his second wife, Joyce.