William Alexander Mayfield, 90, of Mt. Pleasant, SC, entered into eternal rest on November 4, 2019. His family will hold a celebration of his life at a later date. Bill was born in Greer, SC, April 15th, 1929, son of Lillian Ballenger Mayfield and Thomas Murray Mayfield. He attended the Citadel until the illness and death of his mother required he return home to Greenville. He met his wife of 64 years, Eleanor Ruth Patton, at Furman University while enrolled there. Following the path of his father and brother Tommy, he joined the Army and served as an artillery officer at Fort Bliss, TX. Hurricane Gracie brought Bill and Eleanor to the South Carolina coast in 1959, where Bill worked as an insurance adjuster for TM Mayfield Agency. After becoming a CPA, Bill was named manager of the Sadler Insurance Agency, and finished his career in insurance as the co-owner of Mayfield and Taylor Insurance Agency in Charleston. After retirement In 1993 Bill began a new endeavor that surprised his family and friends. He rented a space on Market Street and opened the Wells Gallery, one of the first fine art galleries in Charleston. The gallery moved to Broad Street, and the success of the Wells during the 90’s helped launch and pave the way for the art destination Charleston would become. Later he opened 106 Patton Gallery in Asheville, and the Mayfield Gallery in Ponte Vedra, Florida. Bill’s life was upended in November of 2012 with the sudden illnesses and deaths of his two sons, Glenn and Wells, three weeks apart. Eleanor was diagnosed with Alzheimers during this same time, and Bill took care of her at home for most of her illness until her death in 2016. He dealt with these tragedies with strength, acceptance and compassion, maintaining his wry sense of humor throughout. Bill was beloved by many, and his presence is already greatly missed. He is survived by his daughter Susan Mayfield Hunnicutt, and her husband Lee, of Salida, CO and Beaufort, SC, grandchildren Joseph Raleigh West, III and wife Hall, of Columbia, SC, Scott Patton West of Columbia, SC, Dr. Caroline West Laggis and husband David, of Salt Lake City, Utah, William Alexander Mayfield of Gainesville, FL., three great- grandchildren, and a brother, Edward (Ebby) Mayfield and wife Pat, of Winston Salem, NC, and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his wife, Eleanor Patton Mayfield, and his two sons, William Glenn Mayfield, and Wells Thomas Mayfield, and brother Thomas (Tommy) Mayfield. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Beaufort County Open Land Trust, PO Box 75, Beaufort, SC, 29901, openlandtrust.org , or to Central Colorado Conservancy, PO Box 942, Salida, CO 81201, centralcoloradoconservancy.org. A memorial message may be sent to the family online at jhenrysturh.com. Visit our guestbook at www.legacy.com/obituaries/ charleston
Posted in: Post and Courier
Posted on: 2019-11-11
Link to original obituary: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/charleston/obituary.aspx?n=william-alexander-mayfield&pid=194402601&fhid=6307