Rosemary (Birmingham) O'Brien

Jun 6, 1925 - Sep 29, 2018

Rosemary O'Brien, 93, died on September 29, 2018 at her home at Princeton Windrows, in Princeton, NJ after a long struggle with Parkinson's disease.

She was born June 6, 1925 in South Bend, Indiana, the eldest child of Dr. Peter Birmingham and Sarah Birmingham. She graduated from Saint Mary's College in 1947 and earned a master's degree in Far Eastern Studies from the University of Michigan in 1979.

In 1948 she married James L. O'Brien of Beloit, Wisconsin, with whom she raised three children in South Bend, Indiana and Ann Arbor, Michigan, before moving to Princeton in 1968. She greatly enjoyed spending summers, over more than fifty years, at their cottage in Harbor Springs, Michigan.

Rosemary had a passion for reading and a great talent for writing, culminating in the publication of a book on the diaries of Gertrude Bell, who was an early female Middle East explorer. She enjoyed travel around the globe with her husband Jim who was an attorney and executive with Bendix International. Rosemary also developed an increasing interest in other women's issues and published articles and chapters on women's historical and cultural topics. Where ever she lived she enjoyed participating in various book groups and reading clubs. She always showed flair for entertaining. Rosemary was active in many civic activities in Princeton. She was among the first women to be inducted into the Old Guard of Princeton Nassau Club.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 54 years, James L. O'Brien, who died in 2002, her parents and her brother Richard and his wife Jeanne.

Obituary from the Kimble Funeral Home

Source: FindAGrave.com

03/30/2025 EJS

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/243021139/rosemary-o'brien10062360