Robert Mayers

Obituary of Robert A. Mayers

Bob Mayers was born in Passaic, N.J. on April 7th, 1930, and grew up in Belleville, N.J. during the 1930’s despite the Great Depression and World War II, the neighborhood on Perry Street was teeming with happy children of all ages. Good times and holidays were with cousins in Belleville and visits to Clifton and Passaic to see grandparents, aunts, and uncles. Bob attended Belleville School #3 and was an active cub scout. At the age of nine, he won a “soapbox derby” race, competing against fifteen other small homemade racing cars. Summers were “down the shore” at Shark River Hills and family gatherings at Uncle Dave’s farm in Warren Co. As a teenager Bob was active in the Order of DeMolay and became a Master Mason in 1951. He attended Belleville High School and worked as a laborer, during summers for the Belleville Board of Education.

Bob met the love of his life Norma Lehmann in high school when she was fourteen and was sixteen. After high school he entered Rutgers University and continued working summers to pay for his college tuition. He graduated from Rutgers in 1953 and joined the Navy the same year. His military service was during the Korean conflict. He attended Officer Candidate School, in Newport, RI and was assigned to sea duty as Gunnery Officer on a destroyer, the USS Hunt DD 674. The ship made an around the world cruise in 1954 and operated in the western Pacific for a portion that year. Bob was promoted to Lieutenant (jg) in 1954 and assigned as Naval Gunfire Liaison Officer with the 6Th Marine Regiment. Co-coincidently, his father Robert E. helped build his ship while working as a marine pipefitter at the Kearney Federal Shipyard during WW II.

After graduation from Belleville High School Norma joined the Prudential Insurance Company where she served as Assistant Office Manager until 1957. Bob and Norma were married on July 23,1955 at Grace Episcopal Church in Nutley, NJ. Bob left the Navy in 1956 and joined the Personnel Department of the Western Electric Company in Newark. The couple lived in Belleville on 90 Overlook Avenue. Bob joined the Westinghouse Corporation in Metuchen, NJ, as Personnel Administrator in 1956. Their first child, Robert Paul was born in 1957 and their second son, Ronald was born only fifteen months after his brother. Daughter Dawn arrived in 1962.

In 1962, the family built their dream home in Watchung, NJ onhigh on a hill with a panoramic view of the valley below. When they first moved to this “wilderness” the street was nothing more than a dirt road that ended at their house. The road was extendedand many young families joined them in new homes. These neighbors became lifelong friends. The Mayers children had endless playmates and attended Watching grade schools and Watchung Hills High School. Bob was an assistant scoutmaster for his sons. Summers were at the Brook Hill Swim Club in town, and weekends and vacations at the family summer home at the Jersey Shore at Shark River Hills.

Norma managed the family’s finances and improvement projects at their homes. Born of European tailors, she became a skilled seamstress and acquired her mother’s cooking skills.  To stay fit, Norma jogged and attended aerobic dance class and Bob swam. 

Bob joined Thomas & Betts Co. in 1957 as Personnel Director and was promoted to Vice President, directing the company’s overseas manufacturing operations. He represented the firm on the Board of Directors of the Union County Chamber of Commerce and served as Chairman of the United Fund.  He received the “Young Man of the Year” award for the County. He left T&B to continue in Human Resources as Director of Industrial Relations at both the Amerace Corporation and North American Philips.

In 1975, he joined the Airco Corporation as the Vice President of Human Resources and was responsible for all personnel and labor relations activities at 123 locations worldwide. Ten years later he began a new career in Human Resources Consulting at Manchester Partners International where he became Executive Vice President and Partner, with direct responsibility for the firm’s offices in New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. In 2002, he left the corporate world to fulfill a lifelong dream of becoming a full-time historian and published author.

The Mayers were avid travelers. They visited the Caribbean Islands and in 1971 flew to California and drove back, crisscrossing the country to stop at national parks and cities. After the children left home for college and their own careers, Bob and Norma continued to see much of the world on annual vacations. Their trips included China, Australia, the Middle East, Scandinavia, Russia, South America, and Europe.  When the family were together, major holidays were celebrated with the children and seven grandchildren, Christmas Day was hosted by Norma at home in Watchung.

In 2001, they built a shore home next door to son Bob and family at 46 South Bay Ave in Highlands, NJ. The waterfront homes are on the Shrewsbury River. Summers were spentbetween Watchung and the shore where the family enjoyed boating, fishing, the beach and frequent get togethers. Winters included cruises and visits to their children’s winter homes in Bonita Springs, and Cape Coral, Florida.

In 2005 Bob and Norma celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary by inviting their children and grandchildren on a cruise to England on the new ship, Queen Mary II.  A gala golden wedding celebration for over a hundred family members, friends, and neighbors at the shore homes of the family on September 10th, 2005. The wedding celebration was held again for their 60th in 2015. 

Bob Mayers became a full-time historian and author in 2002 and wrote seven published books that sold successfully worldwide. “The War Man” released in 2009 is a true account of his Revolutionary War ancestor Corporal John Allison, a soldier in the Continental Army who served for the entire eight years of the war. An expert genealogist, he wrote “The Portrait of an American Family” in 2011, based on his research on the ancestry of the Mayers and Allison families conducted over many years in England and America. These works were followed by “Searching for Private Yankee Doodle - Washington’s Soldiers, in the American Revolution.”  This book describes the men of the Continental Army, who were they and what aspired them to endure appalling hardships.

In 2020, Bob wrote a history of his hometown “Historic Tales of Watchung”. He has appeared on several Comcast TV programs. His other works include: “Revolutionary Citizen-Soldier” featured in History Channel Magazine and Bloody Bound Brook and the Lost Hessian Diary and six other articles that appeared in Garden State Legacy Magazine. Bob is an active member of several historical societies and a frequent speaker and contributor to publications. He has spoken at West Point and the Pentagon. His military experience provides him with a deeper perspective of the campaigns and battle depicted in his books. Visit Bob and his many works on his website, www.revolutionarydetective.com.


Robert A. Mayers

Local Author and Historian

Robert A. Mayers, 94 passed away peacefully on January 25th, 2025, at the Center for Hope Hospice in Scotch Plains. Bob was born in Passaic on April 7, 1930. He grew up in Belleville and after his honorable discharge from the Navy moved with his wife Norma to Watchung where he raised his family.

Bob is predeceased by his grandson Robert K. Mayers. He is survived by his wife of 69 years, Norma, sons Robert (Karyn), Ronald (Annette) and daughter Dawn (William) and grandchildren Christopher (Corinne), Allison (Andrew), Andrew (Bridget), Mark, Maximilian and Madeline as well as his 8 great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Bob’s memory to the Watchung Rescue Squad, 10 Stirling Road, Watchung, NJ 07069 or the Watchung Police Department, Attn: Watchung PBA Local 193, 840 Somerset Road, NJ 07069.

Family and friends are welcome to attend a visitation on Friday, February 7th, 2025, from 4 to 7 p.m. with a service following immediately at 7:00 p.m. at Higgins Funeral Home, 752 Mountain Blvd., Watchung, NJ 07069. Burial will be held privately.

Friday
7
February

Visitation at the Funeral Home

4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Friday, February 7, 2025
Higgins Home for Funerals
752 Mountain Blvd.
Watchung, New Jersey, United States
Friday
7
February

Funeral Service

7:00 pm
Friday, February 7, 2025
Higgins Home for Funerals
752 Mountain Blvd.
Watchung, New Jersey, United States

*PRIVATE* Burial Services

Burial services will be held privately.
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