William “Bill” Burnham Ledger

WAUPACA, Wis. – William “Bill” Burnham Ledger passed away on Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025. Bill was born in South Paris, Maine on Sept. 22, 1936, the oldest child of William Benjamin Ledger (former Principal of Oxford High School) and Emma Elizabeth Thompson Ledger (former teacher at Norway High School). Bill initially lived in Norway, Oxford, and Mechanic Falls before the family relocated to Portland, Maine.

Bill graduated from Deering High School in 1954, attended Portland Junior College, and the University of Maine – Orono before transferring to “Northrop Aeronautical Institute” in Inglewood, California.

Bill drove to California from Portland, Maine in his 1931 Model ‘A’ Ford (five window coupe) that he had rebuilt with a Flathead V-8 Engine and Hydraulic Brakes in the family garage on Woodmont Street in Portland. Early on, Bill had hopes of becoming a Jet Pilot in the Air Force, but a brain concussion during a high school basketball game ended that dream.

Bill became a Mechanical Engineer in the Paper Industry, visiting the paper manufacturing plants to determine what they needed for machinery; then designing that machinery for them. That profession took him to many places, including his homes in South Walpole, Mass.; Glens Falls, N.Y.; and Cornell, Wis. before his final destination in Waupaca, Wis.

Bill was married to the late Sandra (Coveo) Ledger of South Walpole, Mass. and adopted her two daughters Laura and Linda. He and Sandra had twin sons William Brian and Jeffrey Scott. That family has grown from their four children to seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. In later life, Bill married Donna Gyldenvand on Sept. 22, 2001, a widow with three grown sons, Steve, Jim, and Bryon and daughter, Lori.

Due to failing heart health, Bill had been living at “Bethany” Nursing home in Waupaca, Wis. for the past 15 months. His ashes will be buried in Roque Bluffs, Maine in the cemetery donated by his grandmother, Lura Vellie Gould Thompson, from her farm to the town of Roque Bluffs over 100 years ago. Bill’s mother and grandmother are buried there by the big THOMPSON headstone with other close relatives.

Bill is survived by his wife Donna Gyldenvand and her children; as well as his children Laura Hannay (Ed) of Belvidere, Ill., Linda Minten (John) of Appleton, Wis., William Brian Ledger (Melanie) of Fond du Lac, Wis., and Jeffrey Scott Ledger (Jessica) of Stevens Point, Wis.; and their seven children and five grandchildren.

Bill is also survived by his sisters Patricia Ledger Maxim of Naples, Maine and Jane Ledger-Anton of Treasure Island, Fla. (formerly of Scarborough, Maine); three nieces and two nephews; 15 great-nieces and nephews; and 11 great-great-nieces and nephews.

A memorial gathering was held on Thursday, Aug. 14, from 1:30 p.m. until 3 p.m. at Holly Funeral Home in Waupaca, Wis.