William Edward Newman, 94, passed away on July 26, 2026, at home in Dumont, NJ, surrounded by his family.

William, known as Bill to his family and friends, was born on June 9, 1932, in Teaneck, NJ, the only son of the late Portia (née Bender) and Francis (Frank) Newman. He was raised in Union City, NJ.

A graduate of Emerson High School in Union City, NJ, Bill went on to earn a BA and an MA in history, both from Montclair State University, and began his teaching career at Palisades Park Elementary School in 1954. He later taught English and history at Northern Valley Regional High School in Demarest from 1956 to 1961, then became the history department supervisor at the newly created Northern Valley Regional High School in Old Tappan in 1962, serving until his retirement in 1992. Bill continued to teach a wide variety of history classes for the next 20 years at William Paterson University, Fairleigh Dickinson University, Ramapo College, and Montclair State University, and he particularly enjoyed working with budding student teachers.

Bill was a voracious reader and maintained a personal reading list with no fewer than 5,300 titles read; he stopped counting in 2010 but kept reading. He was also passionate about opera and the history of opera. He shared these passions with the public, delivering more than 1,600 lectures over a 31-year span to professional and civic groups, high schools, universities, and libraries. He also served for 40 years on Dumont’s Dixon Homestead Public Library Board of Trustees, from 1971 to 2011, and was very proud, as Vice President, to be part of the library’s growth with the dedication of the Alfred W. Heath Wing in 1982.

William was the beloved husband of Rose Mary (née Fratinardo) for nearly 65 years, devoted father of Steven, Lawrence, and Suzanne, and doting grandfather of Steven’s children, Liam, Evan, and Daniella.

A celebration of William’s life will be held on Thursday, July 30, 2026, from 3:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Frech-McKnight Funeral Home, 161 Washington Avenue, Dumont, NJ. A Funeral Mass will be offered on Friday, July 31, 2026, at 10:00 AM at St. Therese of Lisieux R. C. Church, 120 Monroe Avenue, Cresskill, NJ. William will be entombed at St. Joseph Cemetery, 179 Hackensack Avenue, Hackensack, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, donations in William’s memory may be made to the Dixon Homestead Public Library, 180 Washington Ave, Dumont, NJ 07628.