Henry M. Chance II, 98, United Engineers executive, Penn trustee

Henry M. Chance II, 98, former president and chairman of United Engineers & Constructors in Philadelphia and a longtime Penn trustee, died of an infection Tuesday, July 27, at Kendall, a retirement community near Kennett Square.

A son, Steven, said that Mr. Chance spent 41 years with the company, which was founded by Mr. Chance's grandfather.

Henry Chance succeeded his father as president upon his death in 1954 and became chairman in 1972. After his retirement in 1977, he continued as a director and consultant with the firm, which became a subsidiary of the Raytheon Co.

Mr. Chance, who used to live in Malvern, joined the University of Pennsylvania's board of trustees in 1964 and received the title emeritus in 1982.

In a joint statement after Mr. Chance's death, Penn president Amy Gutmann and board chairman David L. Cohen said, "Henry served as a university trustee for an impressive 46 years."

Interested in the early Middle East and pre-Columbian cultures, Mr. Chance became part of the University Museum's board of overseers in 1976 and served for 20 years, their statement said.

With his brother Britton, Mr. Chance established the Edwin M. Chance Professorship in Biochemistry and Biophysics in the School of Medicine to honor their father.

Born in Pottsville, Pa., Mr. Chance graduated from the Haverford School in 1930 and earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering at Penn in 1934.

A 1945 biography from United Engineers stated that from 1934 to 1936, he was a junior metallurgist at the American Smelting Co. in Helena, Mont.

In 1936, the biography stated, he joined United Engineers and worked on processes for cleaning coal at mines in Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The company performed design and construction management of major industrial projects such as power plants, steel mills, and chemical facilities.

During World War II, he was an assistant construction manager on projects in the Philadelphia region.

In 1959, he was named a director of the Pennsalt Chemicals Corp. The Engineers Week Committee named him engineer of the year in 1964.

He was a member of the board of managers at the Franklin Institute, a director of the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, and a life director of the Haverford School.

He was a director of Girard Trust Co. and Lukens Steel and a member of the Merion Cricket Club, the Radnor Hunt, the Midday Club of Philadelphia, and the Duquesne Club of Pittsburgh.

His son said his father sailed his yawl, Hirondelle, six times in races from Newport, R.I., to Bermuda. He also took part in three other Bermuda races.

He was a former member of the Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia and the New York Yacht Club.

Besides his son Steven, Mr. Chance is survived by his wife, Elisabeth; sons Edwin, James, and Mark; daughters Suzanne Schenkel and Barbara Stone; 10 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. A son, Henry III, died in 1995. His former wife, Suzanne, died in 1993.

A memorial is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 18, at St. David's Episcopal Church, 763 S. Valley Forge Rd., Wayne.