John Franklin Swope

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution announces with great sorrow the death of WHOI Corporation Member, John Franklin Swope, on April 29, 2025. He had been a resident of Concord, NH, for 62 years and a lifetime summer resident of Woods Hole, MA. Born in Mount Kisco, NY, June 21, 1938, he was the son of Gerard Swope Jr. and Marjorie Lincoln (Park) Swope. He was a graduate of Tabor Academy (1956), Amherst College (1960), and Yale Law School (1963).

John married Marjory Mason in Milburn, NJ, June 9, 1962. In 1963 he and Marjory moved to Concord, NH, where he joined the United Life & Accident Insurance Company as an attorney. He was promoted to corporate secretary in 1969, vice president in 1970, senior vice president in 1974, and president in 1977. John became president of Chubb LifeAmerica in 1980, when United Life’s parent company, the Chubb Corporation, merged its life and health insurance subsidiaries into a single entity.

John also served on several corporate boards, including Bank of New Hampshire and Northeast Utilities. Following his retirement from Chubb in 1995, he became affiliated for a time with the Sheehan Phinney law firm in Manchester, NH. John served on the board of both New Hampshire Public Television and the national PBS board, serving as interim CEO of each at different times. He served on numerous local boards and committees including the Concord Human Rights Council, Zoning Board of Appeals, Planning Board, and the Concord Chamber of Commerce. John was a co-founder of both the New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts and Leadership New Hampshire. In more recent years, he greatly enjoyed the new friendships forged and his old friendships deepened at the Snowshoe Club, whose members continued to visit him through his final illness. John was one of New Hampshire’s leading philanthropists. As early as 1975, he became involved in efforts to transform the old Capitol Theater in Concord into an arts center. These efforts came to fruition in 1995 with the opening of the Capitol Center for the Arts, where he remained an emeritus board member at the time of his death. In 2011, he donated 77 acres of open space on Jerry Hill to the City of Concord to create Marjory Swope Park as a lasting memorial to his late wife, a passionate conservationist. John took great pleasure in hearing from the many people who enjoyed using the park and the surrounding trail network. He was a longtime trustee of Tabor Academy, the Currier Museum of Art, a member of the MBL Council at the Marine Biological Laboratory, and a member of the corporation at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

John is survived by his daughter, Kristin Swope of Framingham, MA; son, Kevin A. Swope of Framingham, MA; son, John G. Swope of Staunton, VA; and a grandson, Andrew D. Swope. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his wife, Marjory, in 2007, and by his brothers Gerard L. Swope and Stephen P. Swope.

There will be a celebration of his life on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, NH. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Capitol Center for the Arts, 44 South Main Street, Concord, NH 03301 (www.ccanh.com/donate). Arrangements under the direction of Bennett Funeral Home, 209 North Main Street, Concord, NH.

Information for this obituary is from Dignity Memorial.