Long Time Deep River Resident, 105 Year-Old Carroll Gilson Passed

DEEP RIVER, CT —Carroll Gilson was a local hero. He celebrated his 105th birthday in February and was honored by a drive-by parade at his home at Kirtland Commons, in Deep River. He and his best friend Coco the dog, were all smiles as friends and community members drove by, waved and honked in recognition of Gilson's monumental birthday.

Fast forward to today and it is with great sadness and sorrow that the news of Gilson's passing comes.

According to a Facebook post from the Deep River Housing Authority, Gilson left this world on April 17, 2021.

The post read, "It is with great sadness we say goodbye to a true American hero, Carroll Gilson, February 2, 1916 - April 17, 2021, 105 years well lived. A WWII Veteran, he was kind, generous, stubborn, funny, polite, a die-hard Red Sox fan and a great, great friend. It was an honor to have him at Kirtland for the last 28 years and words can not begin to express how much he will be missed."

Gilson had lived through two pandemics, two world wars, the first landing on the moon, the 1938 hurricane and many more key moments in history. He served in World War II, where he drove ammunition trucks to the front lines. He didn't consider himself old at age 98 and at 105 he still occasionally took his good friend Coco for friendly walks (even though there was a dog walker).

In February, when Patch spoke with Executive Director for the Deep River Housing Authority, Joann Hourigan, who had known Gilson for 28 years, she described the long-time resident as, "... a pretty amazing guy!"

Carroll Gilson will be missed by the entire community.