William Robert Coleman

Bill Coleman, an optometrist and manuscript collector and scholar, died on June 19, 2014. He served in the Merchant Marines before World War II, and then as a first lieutenant in the Phillipines during that war. After the war, he earned his optometry degrees from the Southern California College of Optometry. Bill set up his practice on “E” Street in San Bernardino, California, in the early 1950s, remaining a civic and medical fixture in the community for decades. His dedicated manuscript collecting later developed into scholarly research in American history, resulting in published articles on pieces in his collection. He also chaired the San Bernardino Bicentennial Commission in 1976 and served as president of the Manuscript Society.