Brookville inspector Harold Dougherty dies

Harold Dougherty, who served the Village of Brookville for nearly five decades and was a man known for his devotion to family and community, died Sunday. He was 95.

Dougherty was born in 1916 in Brooklyn, the second of four children. He dropped out of school at 14 and worked odd jobs shining shoes and caddying to help support his family. He went on to work as a plumber's apprentice at Todd Shipyards in Brooklyn.

While working at Todd's in 1942, Dougherty was on the SS Normandie when it caught fire and sank to the bottom of the Hudson River. Dougherty escaped unharmed. He was drafted during the later part of World War II and served in the Navy as a shipfitter.

In 1944, he met and married his first wife, Dorothy, and had three children. "He was the true definition of a father," said son Timothy, of Brookville. "He was a great provider and he loved his family." Dorothy Dougherty died from cancer in 1990.

After World War II, Dougherty started his own eponymous plumbing company and moved to Brookville in the late 1950s.

Dougherty built homes in the area, and owned and showed eight horses. In the early 1960s, Dougherty began working with the village as a consultant and eventually was appointed plumbing inspector.

In 1969, he became building inspector, a position he would hold for 23 years.

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Brookville Mayor Caroline Bazzini, who has served the village in various capacities, said she worked with Dougherty for 22 years. "The thing I remember most is his amazing smile," Bazzini said. "He liked to make people happy and he did that just by smiling."

Dougherty began sharing his inspector duties with his son after he graduated from college with a degree in engineering. "I was clearly his protege," Timothy Dougherty said. "It was because of his influence, I am what I am." Timothy Dougherty took over the position in 1992 but his father stayed on as his consultant.

In 1992, Dougherty met his second wife, Laura, and they married in 1999. According to Bazzini, Dougherty often joked that she was his "longest project," as it took seven years to convince her to marry him.

"He was a very hard worker and a self-made man," his son said.

In addition to his son and wife, Dougherty is survived by his daughters, Jill Warga of Brookville and Amy Sinque of Orlando, Fla., and four grandchildren.

Visiting will be Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. at Oyster Bay Funeral Home, 261 South St., Oyster Bay. A funeral service will be held Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at Christ Church in Oyster Bay. Dougherty will be buried at Holy Rood Cemetery in Westbury.