James C. O’Neill, professor emeritus of French and former chairman of the Department of Romance Languages from 1960-73, died Sept. 2 in Vienna, Va.

O’Neill was born, along with his twin John Drew, in 1909 in Canandaigua,N.Y., the son of John Cornelius and Sarah Drew O’Neill. The family later moved to Rochester, N.Y.

After a freshman year at the University of Rochester, he transferred to U-M, and except for service in the Armed Forces during World War II from 1942-45, he never left his beloved Ann Arbor.

O’Neill received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1930, Master of Arts in 1932 and his doctorate in 1942. He was promoted to associate professor in 1955 and to professor in 1961. When he retired in 1980, former President Harold Shapiro wrote, “Professor O’Neill’s career is distinguished by praiseworthy dedication to the University of Michigan, to which he has devoted all of his life in a variety of duties too numerous to mention. Among these, however, stands out his 13-year period as chairman of the Department of Romance Languages, during the challenging years from 1960 to 1973. This length of tenure as administrative head of the department allowed him to build one of the most distinguished foreign language departments in the country.

“His success as an administrator did not obscure his talents as a teacher. From the very beginning of his career as a part-time instructor, Professor O’Neill was recognized as an imaginative, witty and fascinating teacher. This natural affinity for the most important aspect of our endeavors led him to a direct involvement in the supervision and articulation of the language program for many years. For this dedication to his teaching duties he was awarded the Order of the Palmes Academiques by the French government in 1963,” Shapiro continued.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Mary Elizabeth, his daughters, Mary Drew Downs, Catherine Hart O’Neill and Sarah Ellen O’Neill, his son, James Neal O’Neill, daughter-in-law Laura Anne Kelso, sons-in-law Will Downs and John Robert Mohan, and four grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son John Neal O’Neill, and brother, John Drew O’Neill and sister, Mary Margaret O’Neill.