Carl W. Conrad, a professor emeritus of classics in the Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, passed away peacefully in his residence in Yancey County, North Carolina, on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, at the age of 90.

Originally from Washington, D.C., Conrad was raised in New Orleans and studied at Tulane University, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in history in 1955, followed by a master’s in classics the subsequent year.

Afterward, Conrad dedicated a year to the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich under a Fulbright scholarship. He completed his doctorate in classical philology at Harvard University in 1964.

He became a member of the WashU faculty in 1961, teaching Greek and Latin languages, literature, and biblical studies. His other academic pursuits encompassed Greek tragedy, Latin poetry, and the evolution of ideas within the Greco-Roman-Hellenistic tradition. He exhibited a particular fascination with Propertius’ elegies, Plato’s “Republic,” and later, the advent of the New Testament texts in the Hellenistic context.

Conrad participated in various academic and administrative committees, such as the Graduate Council and the General Studies Committee, and held the position of chair of classics in 1978.

In 1987, he, along with three other classics faculty members, initiated research utilizing the Ibycus, a specialized computer that contained three-fourths of the existing Greek literature from approximately 750 BCE to 600 AD. Located within the department’s Classics Study Center, it was one of only 12 Ibycus computers active at that time. From 1998 onward, Conrad actively contributed to the “B-Greek” internet forum, interacting with scholars and enthusiasts on subjects linked to the Greek language and biblical texts.

In 2001, Conrad and his wife of 65 years, Velma Grindstaff Conrad, retired to the home where Velma was born and raised, alongside the South Toe River in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains. In 2006, the classics department instituted the Carl Conrad Prize for Excellence in Classical Studies, a yearly undergraduate award.

Conrad is survived by his wife, Velma Conrad, their two children, Fred Conrad from St. Louis, and Kathryn Conrad (Mark Corneliussen) from Tucson, Arizona, in addition to grandchildren Grace and Zac Corneliussen; step-granddaughter Aleah Canchola and her two children.

In line with Conrad’s wishes, there will be no public memorial service. Memorial contributions may be made to MY Neighbors (PO Box 686, Burnsville, NC 28714), a fully volunteer elderly care organization serving Yancey County. The family obituary and condolences can be viewed on the Yancy Funeral Services website.

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