James Godshalk, chemical engineer

James Bond Godshalk, 98, of Lower Makefield Township, a chemical engineer and inventor, died Friday, May 3, at Chandler Hall Hospice in Newtown, Bucks County.

Born in Philadelphia, he was a Lower Makefield resident for 50 years. He was a descendant of John Howland, 13th signer of the Mayflower Compact in 1620.

Mr. Godshalk lost his son, William Robert, 35, in the Sept. 11, 2001, World Trade Center attacks. An investment banker, the young man had become engaged shortly before his death.

The elder Mr. Godshalk graduated from the Haverford School and received a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1936.

While in college, he was a member of Alpha Chi Sigma, the professional chemistry fraternity; the Delta Psi Fraternity; and the Penn squash team. He served as president of the Class of 1936 Alumni for two decades ending in 1986.

Mr. Godshalk, a chemical engineer who specialized in manufacturing, design, and research, had many patents in his name. He designed machinery parts for the poultry industry and parts for batteries.

"He was always in the garage inventing things," said his wife, Grace M. Parkinson Godshalk.

He was president and owner of Ultra-Mold Corp. in Yardley. Previously he had been president of Fox Products Corp. in Philadelphia.

While working as an electrochemist at Leeds & Northrup Co. in Philadelphia at the start of World War II, he was recruited by the Navy as a civilian to work as an electrical engineer at the Naval Ordnance Laboratory in Washington.

He worked on a harbor defense system and on submarine, mine, and torpedo detectors for American harbors. He was honored for his achievements with a Meritorious Civilian Service Award in November 1945.

Along with Penn professors, he coauthored "Guidelines for Safety in High Rise Buildings Based on the World Trade Center Disaster," a paper presented at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers' 2007 annual meeting in Salt Lake City.

"That was based on our son's loss," his wife said. "He wanted not to have that happen again to another family."

He loved sailing and was a former vice commodore of the Mantoloking (N.J.) Yacht Club.

He had been married to Frances Emlen Godshalk Cullen. They later divorced. She remarried and is deceased.

Surviving, in addition to his wife, are son James Bond Jr.; daughters Julie Godshalk Jones, Lee, and Jane Bond Haller; nine grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and nieces and nephews.

Funeral services and burial were private.

Contributions may be made to the Buck Hill Falls Conservation Foundation, Box 350, Buck Hill Falls, Pa. 18323.

Condolences to the family may be offered at www.fitzgeraldsommerfuneralhome.com.