Wilbert Coburn Freer

Wilbert Coburn Freer BA ’60, February 26, 2019, age 79, in the Episcopal Church Home, Rochester, New York. Born in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Freer grew up in Portland and attended Lewis & Clark, where he studied mathematics and English. After earning his PhD in English from the University of Washington, he taught English and creative writing at the University of Arizona, the University of Montana, the University of Oulu (Finland), the University of London, and the University of Georgia. Throughout his 40-year career, he wrote and presented on topics related to 16th- and 17th-century English literature. He also wrote two books: Music for a King: George Herbert’s Style and the Metrical Psalms (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1972) and The Poetics of Jacobean Drama (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1982). He is survived by his beloved wife of 57 years, Ramona, as well as two daughters and their families.