Obituary
Peter Thomson Robertson, who lived in the Auburndale village in the city of Newton, MA for more than 45 years with his wife Cathryn “Cathie” Seibert Robertson of 54 years (she died in May 2023) passed away on Saturday, February 22, 2025. Peter is survived by his sister-in-law Victoria Robertson of the District of Columbia, his sister Margaret (Mardi) LaForce of Cincinnati, his sister Hope Robertson of Boulder, his brother George Robertson of Seattle, his brother-in-law Gordon Seibert of Holladay, Utah and his brother-in-law Richard LaForce of Cincinnati, his niece Celeste Marokus of Ashland, Oregon and many other nieces and nephews and numerous great nieces and grand-nephews. Peter’s older brothers Reuben B. Robertson, III and Daniel Huger Robertson pre-deceased him.
Peter grew up outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, the third son of Reuben B. Robertson, Jr. and Margaret (Peggy) Watkins Robertson. After high school, Peter acquired a BA in history from the University of Virginia and then obtained a law school degree from Boston College Law School. He spent the early years of his practice working as a general counsel lawyer for Massachusetts regulatory agencies.
After leaving the state Division of Insurance, Peter built an insurance regulatory practice involving representation of clients on complicated Massachusetts insurance issues. Peter also served as a director on several insurance companies, including becoming a founding director of what has become one of the largest medical malpractice insurance companies in the United States.
Peter and Cathie enormously enjoyed traveling throughout Europe and especially in Central America and the Caribbean. In recent years, they traveled all over Belize, hiking and snorkeling everywhere in the country. They also went all around Italy, and they spent a lot of time with their friends the Franca and Beppino Burgissers at their villa in central Tuscany. Other favorite places were St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands.
Peter spent the last five years doing research and writing about the illustrious and accomplished lives and careers of his great-grandfather Peter G. Thomson (for whom he was named), his grandfather Reuben B. Robertson, Sr., who ran Champion International Company’s operations in North Carolina for almost 40 years and assumed the presidency of the company in the late 1940s, and Peter’s father Reuben B. Robertson, Jr., who succeeded his father in 1950. Peter’s father took off almost two years as president of the family company to serve as the Deputy Secretary of Defense under President Dwight Eisenhower between 1955 and 1957, before resuming the role as Champion’s president until he was killed by a drunk driver in 1960. Many of Peter’s pieces about his great-grandfather and his grandfather were published in the Waynesville, North Carolina newspaper known as The Mountaineer. Peter considered the many pieces about his illustrious family members and the many other stories he wrote about other family stories the highlight of his career.
A celebration of Peter’s life will take place 2:00pm EST, Saturday, March 8, 2025. Register below.
Contributions can be made in Peter’s name to Good Shepherd Community Care or to the Reuben B. Robertson, Sr. Fund at the Lake Logan Conference Center.
Celebration of Life
Recorded Saturday, March 8, 2025
Peter’s family invites you to view the celebration of life service & reception to honor his life and legacy.
Photo Gallery
Slideshow
In lieu of flowers please consider donating to Good Shepherd Community Care.
Good Shepherd Community Care is one of the most trusted health care organizations in Greater Boston focusing on hospice and palliative care. Founded as Hospice of the Good Shepherd in 1978, they are the original Massachusetts hospice. After decades of caring for the community, they continue to remain community-based, not-for-profit and non-sectarian.
In lieu of flowers please consider donating to the Reuben B. Robertson, Sr. fund at Lake Logan Conference Center.
The history of Lake Logan Conference Center and Camp Henry begins in the early 1930s, when logging operations of the Champion Lumber Mill at Sunburst, NC had clear-cut all the timber on the surrounding mountains. The sawmill had been sent to another location and Sunburst, the company town in the valley, was essentially deserted. The President of the company, Reuben Robertson (Peter’s grandfather), convinced his Board that if the valley were dammed and a lake formed there, it would ensure a reserve water source for paper operations at Champion’s paper mill in Canton, downstream. So the town was disassembled, the dam was built, and the water from the Pigeon River was impounded to form Lake Logan, and named for Logan Thomson who was Reuben Senior’s brother-in-law, the son of Peter G. Thomson, and the President of Champion in the 1940s. Today, we are the beneficiaries of one of the most beautiful mountain lakes on the East Coast. It is the centerpiece of an ecologically bountiful environment punctuated only by the scenic byway that runs through it and whose occasional traffic reminds us how peaceful this remote valley truly is.
When making your donation, please click on “Select a fund below” and scroll down to choose the “Reuben B. Robertson, Sr. Fund.”
It is so affirming to know how loved Peter is by everyone who knows him. This memorial was so special and moving and inspires me to be a better person. I feel I didn’t deserve all Peter gave me – but I know that he was a very special person and the world is so much less without him. It was too soon and he was too young, but he left us all the gift of appreciation and gratitude, and acceptance.
These remembrances in the celebration have been incredibly beautiful and powerful. It is inspiring to hear how many people Peter touched deeply in his life with compassion and generosity. I will always be extremely grateful for the chance to work with Peter in researching his grandfather’s life and to become his friend, and also to meet several members of his wonderful extended family, including George, Elizabeth, Celeste, Lollie, and Clark. I send my condolences and best wishes to everyone.
It was a beautiful celebration. Thank you so much. Our thoughts are with you all.
Rick and Carole Murphy and Melissa Dotz.
To the Robertson family –
What a great and beautiful tribute today.
We were long time neighbors and part of the “Tibetan terrier lovers” neighborhood club.
We are thinking of you – and of course Leo, whom we love.
What a beautiful memorial service. It was wonderful to learn more about Peter beyond knowing him as a friendly neighbor who was always willing to stop and say hi to us and especially to our dogs. May many happy memories of this special person bring you comfort.
I had the opportunity to work with Peter for many years on a wide variety of insurance issues. He was an excellent lawyer, a trusted counsellor, a wonderful teacher, and a good man. He will be missed.
Beautiful tribute to Peter.
To the Robertson family….
I was so sad to hear of Peter’s passing. I only knew Peter for a short time thanks to his inviting me to the Thompson-Robertson Reunion last year. Thanks to that invitation, I got to know Peter and his love for his family especially his grandfather. He invited me because my Dad, Jimmy Haynie, wrote “The Ballad of Reuben B” for Reuben Sr. I heard so very much from my Dad about the entire Robertson family. and his love for them. The Robertson family will never be forgotten for what they did for my hometown of Canton, North Carolina.
Peter will be remembered for his historical interest in the Champion Paper Company in Canton and his desire to keep alive its legacy.
Thank you, Peter. You will be missed.
Carolyn Haynie
Peter’s passing leaves a huge gap in the Robertson family. I knew him from his Washington visits. The most recent one was when he performed Maggie’s wedding. He was a real ‘pater familias.’
Peter will be greatly missed.
We lived in the same neighborhood as Peter for the past seven years. He was one of our favorite neighbors!! my young son’s ran out every morning to see Peter and Leo walking down our street. He brought a lot of joy to our family and we will miss him very much!
I only knew Peter during the final two months of his life, but I feel I have lost a friend of decades. He was a remarkable person as illustrated by the way he treated me during these month and by the family and friends who he has also deeply impacted over his lifetime.
I enjoyed meeting Peter and other members of his family at the Robertson reunion at Lake Logan. I was sad to learn of his death, but like his father, grandfather and great-grandfather, Peter will remain a fond memory to the people of Canton, North Carolina. As the new owner of Thomson’s paper mill in Canton begins to redesign its purpose, Peter’s work to preserve its history will live on.
Peter was a wonderful friend, and will be sorely missed.
With love, Mary Jane and John