Towne was a well-respected member of the faculty. "He was absolutely wonderful as a teacher and colleague," said Professor of Physics Emeritus Robert Romer. "He cared about the College as a whole-he kept getting elected to committees like the Committee of Six."
"[Towne] was the one we all looked up to and wanted to teach with. He was a role model for me, especially at the beginning [of my career at Amherst]," said Romer.
Towne was probably the first openly gay person at the College after coming out in the early '70's, according to Margaret Hunt, who is a professor of history and of Women's and Gender Studies. "I think it was really brave of him to come out when he did," said Hunt. "He set an example for other people, like myself, who are not heterosexual. He was always very supportive of the younger faculty."
Romer echoed these sentiments. "He was very open about [being gay]. He wrote articles about what it was like to be a gay faculty member when being gay was not widely accepted," said Romer.
Towne participated in several choral ensembles, including the Hampshire Choral Society, Smith/ Amherst Chamber Singers, Da Camera Singers and the Gay Men's Chorus, according to a College press release.
"[Towne] contributed to the College in so many ways, it's hard to think of a way he didn't contribute," said Romer.
"It's hard to talk about him because he had so many wide-ranging interests. He was a very talented musician, and he was very good at languages," said Hunt.
Towne loved to travel and learned at least 11 languages, according to the College press release.
Towne entered Yale University at age 16. He interrupted his studies to serve in China during World War II for 3 years, returning to Yale at the end of the war. He graduated from Yale in 1945 with a B.S. in physics. Towne received his Ph.D. in physics from Harvard University in 1951 and was recruited by the College immediately out of graduate school. He published one textbook, "Wave Phenomena." He retired from the College in 1997.
Towne is survived by one sister, two brothers and seven nieces and nephews. A memorial service for Towne will be held at the College in the spring.