William "Dick" Crawford II

William Dickson (Dick) Crawford II of Harbor Springs, Michigan, passed away peacefully at his home with his wife, Margaret (Marge), and his eldest son, John, the morning of Sunday, January 31, 2021. In accordance with his wishes, his body was donated to his alma mater, the University of Michigan. A memorial service will be held by Dick’s spiritual family, the Holy Childhood Catholic Church, on Friday, July 9 at 11:00 a.m.

Dick was born on April 5, 1943, in Downer’s Grove, Illinois, to William Dickson and Dorothy Louise (Pierce) Crawford. He grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey. While studying architecture at the University of Michigan, Dick spent multiple summers in the Pacific Northwest, largely to work on the reconstruction efforts following the 1964 earthquake in Anchorage, Alaska. In 1966, he received his architecture degree from U of M. Following this, he served in the Vietnam War as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In 1971, he moved to Harbor Springs as an Associate Architect with Swanson & Associates. That summer, he met Marge MacGregor and, on June 15, 1974, they were married in Petoskey, Michigan. Later that year, he established the Emmet County Building Department, where he served as the Head of the state-renowned Building Department for 33 years. During this time, he was a Senior Author and Instructor of national and state building codes, a founding Board Member and President of the Northern Michigan Code Officials Association (NMCOA) and President of the Building Officials and Code Administrators of Michigan (BOCM). Locally, Dick was involved with Teams of Our Lady, his faith community, and the Harbor Springs Area Historical Society in several capacities, including Treasurer. More than anything, Dick loved spending time playing, creating, and laughing with his wife, Marge, and their children: John Dickson, Michael Douglas, and Colleen Margaret. He enjoyed his dogs, golfing, bowling, photography, woodworking, playing cards, swimming, cross-country skiing, canoeing, hiking, camping, and traveling - all as a family. Dick was well-known for his infectious smile, upbeat personality, easy-going nature, empathic understanding, unassuming humor, and unfailingly ethical character.

Dick is preceded in death by his parents and older sister, Susan (Crawford) Maness. He is survived by his wife, Marge, and his children and grandchildren: John and Amber (Switzer) of Harbor Springs, Michigan, and their daughter, Maria Lynn (16), and son, Liam MacGregor (12); Michael and Kasey (Clausen) of La Crosse, Wisconsin, and their daughter, Kinsley Kathleen (7) and Keaton Michael (5); and Colleen and Sean Keating-Crawford of Cincinnati, Ohio, and their sons, Pierce Lucias (3) and Autry Ellis (9 months). He is also survived by his niece, Beth (Maness) Becknell, and nephew, Charles Maness, both of Safety Harbor, Florida.

In the spirit of Dick’s philanthropic generosity and in lieu of flowers, the Crawford family invites you to donate to one of Dick’s favorite non-profits: Harbor Springs Area Historical Society, Holy Childhood Catholic Church, I Am Global Academy, Teach For America, or University of Michigan Medicine.

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