Anthony (Tony) Seavey Patton, MD, died on June 25, 2023, of congestive heart failure and pancreatic cancer.

Tony Patton was born on April 11, 1932, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to William Lyman Patton and Bianca Seavey (Pancoast) Patton. Throughout his life he was proud to be descended from early American families who fought in the American Revolution.

Patton and his wife of 67 years, Christine Card Patton, graduated from Arlington High School in 1950. They both gave speeches at graduation and became close friends while preparing their talks together. He went on to Harvard College, supported by a National Scholarship, graduating cum laude with the Hansen Award in 1954. He played varsity hockey on the Harvard team that won the first Bean Pot Tournament in 1952. He loved his affiliation with Harvard and served the College throughout his life through alumni and reunion activities.

From 1954 to 1958 Patton attended Harvard Medical School. He graduated cum laude and was a member of the AOA, an honorary scholarly society, and the Boylston Society. He and Christine were married in the summer of 1956.

Patton served his surgical residency at the Massachusetts General Hospital from 1958 to 1964. He also trained under thoracic surgeon Jack Griffith, in Devon, England in 1963. The family moved to Danvers, Massachusetts in 1964, where Patton worked in thoracic and vascular as well as in general surgery. At a time of intense innovation in medical technologies, he loved cross-cutting techniques in surgery and using new approaches to solve long-standing problems.

Patton’s primary hospital was Salem Hospital, which has become part of Partners Healthcare and MGH. He was Chief of Thoracic and Vascular Surgery for many years and developed a specialty floor there, one of busiest in New England. He was also a member of the staff at MGH and the visiting staff of several North Shore Hospitals. He was an author or co-author of several surgical papers.

While in practice, Patton helped found the North Shore Health Planning Council and was a founding member of Hospice of the North Shore. He served as President of Essex South Medical Society, President of Essex South Surgical Society, and was a long-term member of the Danvers Board of Health. He was also a member of the New England Surgical Society, The New England Vascular Society, The American College of Surgeons, and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. In 2008, Patton was honored to be named President of Boston Surgical Society.

Patton retired from his surgical practice in 1996. In retirement he spent time teaching medical students at Harvard Medical School, a job that he deeply loved. He also pursued a passion for New England history as a researcher, writer, and lecturer. He served as President of the Danvers Historical Society, was a regular contributor to the Harvard Medical Journal, and served on its editorial board. In addition to publishing smaller pieces in local New England venues, Patton published a historical pamphlet on Dr. William Griggs, the doctor of the Salem Witch Trials. He was also a fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Patton and his family lived almost fifty years in The Caleb Rea House, Danvers, built in 1756. He and Christine invested a great deal in the historical integrity of the home, and maintained a close relationship with the descendants of Caleb Rea. Patton had a particular gift for friendships, from high school to retirement, and described his friends as “the world’s greatest” in whatever they undertook.

Patton was also active in Boothbay Maine, and for many years served on the board of the Boothbay Region Land Trust. In 2013, he and his wife moved to Highland Green in Topsham, Maine, to be part of that close-knit and supportive community.

Anthony Patton leaves behind his beloved wife of 67 years, Christine Card Patton. They were seldom apart and shared a deep love of community and hospitality. In his final years, one of his hospice nurses commented that “they have rarely seen anyone who loves his wife as much as Tony loves Chris.”

He also leaves behind three children: Kimberley Christine Patton, Professor of the Comparative and Historical Study of Religion at Harvard Divinity School; Geoffrey Frederick Patton, Chief Administrative Officer in the Department of Orthopedics at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Laurie Louise Patton, Professor of Indian Culture and History and President of Middlebury College in Vermont. He is also survived by sons-in-law Bruce Beck and Shalom Goldman; daughter-in-law Karen Kent; grandchildren Lee Patton, Caitlyn Patton, Christina Calfo, and Rosemary Beck; and nieces Heidi Patton Moore and Judy Patton Kaplan. His brother William Patton Jr. died in 2015.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, July 2, 2023, at 3PM at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 1 Middle St., Brunswick, ME. (Phone: 207-729-8515)

Donations can be made in memory of Anthony Seavey Patton to: Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, and Care Dimensions (formerly, Hospice of the North Shore).

To share a memory or leave a message of condolence please visit Tony’s Book of Memories Page at www.bibberfuneral.com.

Arrangements are in the care of Bibber Memorial Chapel, 67 Summer Street, Kennebunk, ME 04043.