July 22, 1937 – September 5, 2026
Richard Joslin Quigley, a descendant of early San Francisco settlers, a railway design engineer, and a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, died peacefully at home on September 5, 2026, surrounded by his family. He was 89.
Known to friends as Dick or Quig, he was born July 22, 1937, in Oakland, California, and grew up in the Montclair district. He graduated from Piedmont High School in 1955, where he played bagpipes in the Piedmont Highlanders Kiltie Band, lettered in football and track, and appeared in the senior play.
Dick studied at the University of California, Berkeley, and San Jose State University, earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees and being elected to Tau Delta Phi, San Jose State’s academic honor society. After completing his studies, he moved to New York City, where he worked as a conference officer at the United Nations before returning to California.
Dick served in Military Intelligence in the U.S. Army Reserve, rising from private to major in 13 years. He earned his parachutist wings while attached to the XVIII Airborne Corps. His military service was a source of lifelong pride. He left the active Reserve when the death of his father-in-law required him to assume leadership of the family railway supply business.
As president and design engineer, Dick developed products that resulted in seven U.S. patents, as well as numerous patents abroad. His principal achievement was a resilient rail-fastening system used by BART and rail systems throughout the United States and abroad.
Dick met Elsie Landis while they were in college and always said it was love at first sight. They married on June 6, 1964, and spent 62 years as true partners, doing nearly everything side by side. They raised their family in Los Altos Hills, spent a memorable year in São Paulo, Brazil, and later moved to Sacramento to be near their granddaughters.
Dick brought energy and spirit to everything he did. He loved skiing, sailing, boating, fly-fishing, hiking, running, cycling, and telling stories. His sense of fun was especially evident each Halloween, when he transformed the family home into a neighborhood haunted house filled with elaborate special effects.
Family remained at the center of Dick’s life, and the place closest to his heart was the family cabin at Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe, built by his grandfather in 1933. He spent summers there from childhood and later shared the cabin with his children and grandchildren. Many of the family’s happiest memories were made boating in the old Chris-Craft, water skiing, snow skiing, fishing, hiking in Desolation Wilderness, and simply being together at the cabin.
Dick was an active member of Christ Episcopal Church in Los Altos, where he served on the vestry. He also supported civic, educational, engineering, sailing, and maritime organizations throughout his life.
He is survived by his wife, Elsie; his children, Adelicia, Robert and Richard; Richard’s husband, Scott Harper; his granddaughters, Caroline and Quinn Quigley, and their mother, Angie; his sister, Pamela Barnes; his niece, Sarah Sarmiento, and her family; and many other relatives and dear friends.
A celebration of Dick’s life will be held at noon on Saturday, November 14, 2026, at Christ Episcopal Church, 1040 Border Road, Los Altos, California. A reception will follow in the parish hall. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the church’s Endowment Fund or the Wounded Warrior Project.
