Dr. William “Bill” Webster Southmayd, a pioneering orthopedic surgeon, died peacefully on the morning of June 9, 2026. He was 83. 

Bill was born in Boston on Oct. 13, 1942, the son of Clarendon L. and Elizabeth Talbot Southmayd. 

He graduated from Newton High School in 1960, then attended Harvard College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and served as captain of the varsity football team, earning All-Ivy League honors at guard. He went on to Harvard Medical School, graduating cum laude in 1968, and completed his internship and residency in orthopedics at Massachusetts General Hospital. 

During the Vietnam War, Dr. Southmayd served his country as an orthopedic surgeon in the U.S. Army Medical Corps at Fort Dix, N.J., earning the National Defense Service Medal before his discharge in 1972 with the rank of major. 

Dr. Southmayd built a distinguished career in orthopedic surgery, serving as medical director of Sports Medicine Resource Inc., the largest sports medicine clinic in New England, and as a consulting physician to the Boston Red Sox. Alongside his sports medicine practice, he maintained a second orthopedic practice for non-athletes. 

He served the Boothbay community and surrounding areas as an orthopedic surgeon at St Andrews Hospital for several years, and the Southmayds were summer residents of Boothbay Harbor for over 20 years.

For more than 30 years in practice, Dr. Southmayd cared for 130 patients a week. His warm, reassuring bedside manner endeared him to those in his care — but it was his surgical skill, and the results he achieved, that set him apart. 

Dr. Southmayd co-authored “Sports Health: The Complete Book of Athletic Injuries” with journalist Marshall Hoffman. The book became a bestseller, selling more than 100,000 copies across 14 printings. The New York Times Syndicate and Gannett News Service purchased serial rights, and a 500-word article drawn from the book ran regularly in 115 newspapers. The Boston Globe and The Washington Post ran much longer features. 

To promote the book, Dr. Southmayd appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, ABC’s Nightline, CNN, NPR, AP Radio, and the Larry King Show. He also gave one-on-one interviews to The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, U.S. News & World Report, the Los Angeles Times, and many other major newspapers. 

Amazon reviewers, decades later, still call the book “a classic text” containing “the best compilation of sports injury material” ever assembled, and “hands down the best all-around sports medicine book on the planet.” 

His second book, “Sports Performance,” was co-authored with James M. Rippe, M.D., and Art Pappas, M.D. One reviewer wrote, “A solid footing in cardiology and orthopedics and plenty of experience underlie this cogent guide for athletic participation and rehabilitation.” 

Dr. Southmayd’s deep expertise in sports medicine and fitness — and his gift for explaining complex medical topics in plain language — brought him many offers to work in the national media. He turned them all down, choosing instead to focus on his medical practice. 

In retirement, Bill embraced a quieter life, dividing his time between Key West and the coast and countryside of North Carolina, where he pursued his passions for golf, boating, travel, and reading. Above all, he cherished his role as “Papa” to his grandchildren, Madison, Kyle, Lana, and Jax, often saying that becoming a grandfather had brought him the greatest happiness of his life. 

Left to cherish his memory are his wife, Pamela J. Owens of Farmville; his son, David W. Southmayd, and wife Sheree, of Florida; his step-daughter, Erica Letchworth, and husband Steven, of Farmville; his grandchildren, Madison Southmayd, Kyle Southmayd, Lana Letchworth, and Jackson Letchworth; and the mother of his children, Sarah J. Southmayd of Florida. In addition to his parents, Bill was preceded in death by his daughter, Susan R. Southmayd, and his siblings, Nancy Southmayd Smith and John T. “Jack” Southmayd. 

Bill was always grateful for the blessings and opportunities life had given him, and he remained deeply committed to giving back — to bettering the lives of those around him and the wider world. He was immensely proud of his Welsh heritage and never forgot his roots.