Sociology Professor Dies

William Alonso '54, Saltonstall professor of population policy, died Feb. 11 at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He was 66.

Alonso, an eminent regional planning scientist, will be remembered for his work on third-world urbanization and health, European urban-regional migration patterns and statistical investigations of race and ethnicity in American society.

"Dr. Alonso's research focused on the dynamics of demographic change. His special concern was for population problems in highly urbanized regions," wrote James H. Ware, dean for academic affairs at the School of Public Health (HSPH) in a letter to the HSPH community.

Alonso served as a visiting professor at research facilities in Indonesia and Venezuela and at Yale University during the 1960s. In 1967, he became the professor of regional planning at the University of California, Berkeley and joined the Harvard Faculty in 1976 as Saltonstall professor and director of the Center for Population Studies. In 1983, Mr. Alonso served as acting chair of the Department of Sociology.

Alonso is survived by his wife, Cornelia O'Conner, two children, and a grandchild.

O'Conner described her husband as a down-to-earth and personable man.

"He was not impressed with either himself or his position and he did not tolerate pompousness," she said. "He loved everyone, whether they were one of his colleagues or someone who cleaned his office."

O'Conner said Alonso also loved his work.

"Although he had teaching fellows, Bill always taught his own classes. He loved working with both his graduate and undergraduate students," she said.