Obituary: William Lee Hanley Jr., Chairman of The King's College Board

William Lee Hanley Jr. of Palm Beach, philanthropist and former Vice Chairman of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, died Friday, Nov. 4, 2016, in Greenwich, Conn. He was 76. Mr. Hanley, known as Lee, was born in New York City. He attended Aiken Prep in Aiken, S.C., followed by St. Paul’s School in Concord, N.H. In 1964, he earned a bachelor of arts degree in economics from Yale University.

Mr. Hanley’s grandfather founded The Hanley Brick Co. in 1893, which utilized a patented kiln process to produce hard brick. To supply fuel for brick manufacturing, the family also formed an oil and gas company, Hanley & Byrd in Bradford, Pa. Later known as Hanley Petroleum Inc., it was to expand its acquisition, exploration and development of properties in the ensuing years, eventually to the Permian Basin in West Texas in the early 1950s.

Mr. Hanley went to work for the family business, and ultimately would become chairman and CEO. The brick company was sold in 1986 by Mr. Hanley to Glen-Gery.

In 2015, Mr. Hanley was inducted into the Petroleum Hall of Fame of The Petroleum Museum in Midland, Texas.

Highlights of Mr. Hanley’s directorships and philanthropic activities include: director and ultimately chairman of the board of Greenwich Hospital; director and ultimately chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in Washington D.C.; honorary life trustee, Greenwich Academy; founder and chairman of the Yankee Institute for Public Policy Studies in Connecticut; trustee of both the Boys’ Club of New York and the Boys & Girls Club of Greenwich; chapter chairman, Metro NY YPO; trustee, the International Center for the Disabled in New York City; member, the National Petroleum Council; director, Regnery Gateway Inc., D.C.; director, Eagle Publishing, D.C.; director,

American Spectator Foundation; director, Concho Natural Resources, Midland, and treasurer, JM Foundation in New York City.

Mr. Hanley also served as chairman of the board of trustees The King’s College in New York City, a Christian college, and on the boards of The Society of the Four Arts, and the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach.

He was appointed executive director of the Connecticut Reagan-Bush Committee in 1980; was a member of President Ronald Reagan’s campaign finance committee in 1980 and a delegate to the 1980 Republican Convention. He served in two federal agencies during the Reagan administration.

In addition to his wife Alice “Allie” of 41 years, Mr. Hanley is survived by five daughters: Carroll H. Goggin of Winter Park, Allison H. Frantz of Greenwich, Brooke H. Davison of Boulder, Colo., and Nicole Hanley and Merrill H. Curtis of New York City; and 14 grandchildren.

His parents, William L. Hanley and Elizabeth Niles Hanley, as well as a grandson William Sargeant Frantz, predeceased him.

A funeral service for Mr. Hanley was held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Christ Church Greenwich, 254 E. Putnam Ave., Greenwich. A memorial service will take place in Palm Beach after Thanksgiving.

Gallagher & Son handled arrangements.

Memorial contributions may be sent to The King’s College, 56 Broadway, New York, NY, 10004.

This obituary originally appeared in the Palm Beach Daily News on Friday, November 11, 2016.