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Obituary: Eleanor Hutson Lloyd: Fan of trains and ships

Eleanor Hutson Lloyd, a 35-year Portola Valley resident and former Redwood City travel agent, liked to travel herself, preferably with her husband Arthur and preferably on the water or on the rails.

Ms. Lloyd, who fought a long battle against Alzheimer's disease and emphysema, died in Palo Alto on Jan. 11, her husband said. She was 81.

The couple visited South America five times and crossed the Andes Mountains seven times on high-altitude trains, including in Chile and Bolivia, said Mr. Lloyd, a railroad historian and a member of the Caltrain governing board.

To get to Hawaii in 1958, the Lloyds berthed on the SS Matsonia, a passenger steamship with a regular route between San Francisco and Honolulu, Mr. Lloyd said. They traveled to Australia in the same way.

"She loved to travel," Mr. Lloyd said, adding that she worked as a travel agent for 20 years.

A preference for ships may have come naturally for the Philadelphia native. Her father was Capt. Albert Hutson, who commanded the destroyer tender USS Dixie during World War II. She and Mr. Lloyd were married on the Dixie in San Diego harbor in 1946.

The couple met, Mr. Lloyd said, as lab partners in a zoology class at the University of California, Berkeley, where both were in the pre-med program. Mr. Lloyd later changed his mind about med school and pursued a career in business.

Her initiative was instrumental in the couple getting together. "Mr. Lloyd, would you like to come to my sorority dance?" Mr. Lloyd recalled her saying at one point. "It took me about half a second to reply," he added. "We've been married 63 years."

She became a "wonderful wife" and mother for their three children, he said.

Ms. Lloyd is also survived by daughters Lynne Rosenberg of La Honda; and M-A English teacher Liane Strub of Redwood City; son Lawrence Lloyd of Chico; seven grandchildren; and seven great grandchildren.

Memorial services have been held. Donations in Ms. Lloyd's name may be made to a charity of one's choice.