In Memoriam
Samuel C. Farrington, Jr.
April 30, 2026
On this date we were notified by Yale that Sam Farrington ’64 had passed away on October 23, 2025. Here are the following remembrances:
Obituary
published by Stringer Funeral Home, Claremont, NH
April 27, 2026
Sam Farrington
1964 Yale graduation
Samuel (Sam) Carlton Farrington died on October 23, 2025. He was born on September 1, 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Marguerite (Frost) Farrington and Samuel C. Farrington. The family lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts until 1950 when Sam’s father’s employer relocated to New Jersey and the family moved to Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. During this time, Sam would always spend summers in New Hampshire either at his grandparents’ farmhouse in Claremont or counseling at a summer camp in New Hampshire.
In New Jersey, Sam enrolled in the Ho-Ho-Kus public school system through eighth grade and went on to Ridgewood High School in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Sam always excelled in his public school education, which opened up many opportunities for moving on to college. He chose to attend Yale University and graduated from Yale in 1964.
Sam Farrington
in recent years
After graduation, Sam enlisted in the Army, entered into the Intelligence Agency, and spent thirteen months in South Vietnam.
Sam had an uncle in New Hampshire, who was both an attorney and a judge, and two cousins who both practiced law in New Hampshire. Sam always admired their success and chose to follow in their footsteps. He attended Seton Hall Law School in New Jersey. After graduation, he went on to work for the Legal Aid Program in East Orange, New Jersey and after a few years headed back to New England to work for Vermont Legal Aid in Rutland, Vermont.
He then moved to New Hampshire to manage their Legal Assistance Program and then moved up to Lancaster, NH to be the Clerk of the Superior Court in Lancaster. Sam was also the Clerk of the Superior Court in Carroll Country from 1991 to 2004. Sam went on from there to supervise mediations.
During Sam’s legal career, he always maintained a sense of compassion for the less fortunate clients who could not afford legal representation.
He purchased his home in Albany, NH in 1993 with a stunning view of Mt. Chocorua. Sam always loved the outdoors and country living and was an avid hiker. He spent his vacations and spare time hiking the mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire along with several trips to Colorado to hike in the Rocky Mountains. Sam was a lover of dogs, and his dogs would always be by his side during his travels or his hiking adventures.
Sam was a collector of guitars and an excellent guitar player.
Sam is survived by his brother Charles (Chip) Farrington and his wife Debbie.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank his friends and neighbors, Peter and Sue and Lance and Lisa, for always being there for Sam and for being there for us during this difficult time. God bless you all.
The saddest part of life is when the person who gives you many of your best memories becomes a memory.
Sam, we say to you in the midst of our sorrow that we are grateful that you lived your life among us. We are grateful for your quiet gentleness and for your firm resolve to live life and to die on your own terms. We find solace in knowing that your suffering has ended.
A graveside service will be held at the Union Cemetery in Claremont on Saturday, November 1 at 1:00pm.
Essay, 50th Reunion Book
by Sam Farrington
May 2014
Alex Berenson ’94, wrote in The Night Ranger:
”He was closing in on seventy, old enough to know the truth. His friends and neighbors and college classmates hadn’t grown wiser over the years. They’d just grown more like themselves, become more of whatever they were when they were young. The introverts faded into oblivion. The lazy divided their time between television and naps. The business guys played golf every day, shooting ninety-five with fifteen mulligans. The drinkers … they drank. Until they died. [He] didn’t understand any of them.”
The context of this passage involves a public servant who in later years finds that his life has becoming more engaging and fulfilling than ever before. My utmost gratitude to the classmates who helped me along the way.