Harry George Lee
August 2, 1940 — January 8, 2024
Harry G. Lee M.D.
JACKSONVILLE - Harry Lee passed away on January 8, 2024 in Jacksonville, Florida, from complications related to a stroke he suffered a month earlier; he was 83 years old. He was born in Newark, New Jersey to Robert E. and Isabel Hamilton Lee. He is survived by his wife, Sarah Lee (Kitty); three children: Johnny (Ashley), Bob, and Claire; and three grandchildren: Anna Lee, Morgan White, and Hadley White. He is also survived by his brothers Robert and Frederick (Madonna) Lee and sister, Karen (Danny) Perry. A graduate of Millburn High School, Williams College, and Cornell University Medical School, Harry began his medical career in 1974, practicing internal medicine for 31 years. His retirement afforded him the ability to focus on his lifelong passion of shell collecting. Harry was widely acknowledged as one of the world's top amateur experts in the study of mollusks. He is the author of several books and countless scholarly articles related to the field of malacology and paleontology, including research of microscopic fossilized shells and land snails. He was admitted in 2013 as a Fellow to the Linnean Society of London, having discovered and named 36 shells, with 18 more named after him by other scholars. His personal shell collection was estimated to be the largest private collection in the world, and - over the course of more than a decade - he donated this collection (nearly 1 million shells in total) to the Florida Museum of Natural History. Those wishing to contribute a charitable gift in Harry's memory are encouraged to consider the Williams College 1962 Memorial Scholarship Fund. A private family remembrance will be held at a later date.
JACKSONVILLE - Harry Lee passed away on January 8, 2024 in Jacksonville, Florida, from complications related to a stroke he suffered a month earlier; he was 83 years old. He was born in Newark, New Jersey to Robert E. and Isabel Hamilton Lee. He is survived by his wife, Sarah Lee (Kitty); three children: Johnny (Ashley), Bob, and Claire; and three grandchildren: Anna Lee, Morgan White, and Hadley White. He is also survived by his brothers Robert and Frederick (Madonna) Lee and sister, Karen (Danny) Perry. A graduate of Millburn High School, Williams College, and Cornell University Medical School, Harry began his medical career in 1974, practicing internal medicine for 31 years. His retirement afforded him the ability to focus on his lifelong passion of shell collecting. Harry was widely acknowledged as one of the world's top amateur experts in the study of mollusks. He is the author of several books and countless scholarly articles related to the field of malacology and paleontology, including research of microscopic fossilized shells and land snails. He was admitted in 2013 as a Fellow to the Linnean Society of London, having discovered and named 36 shells, with 18 more named after him by other scholars. His personal shell collection was estimated to be the largest private collection in the world, and - over the course of more than a decade - he donated this collection (nearly 1 million shells in total) to the Florida Museum of Natural History. Those wishing to contribute a charitable gift in Harry's memory are encouraged to consider the Williams College 1962 Memorial Scholarship Fund. A private family remembrance will be held at a later date.
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