Carroll Clifton Dailey, 92, of Huntsville, Alabama, passed away on January 27, 2023. Carroll was born on February 12, 1930, in Montgomery, Alabama, to Henry and Clara Dailey. Carroll grew up in the Montgomery community before attending the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Following graduation from Alabama with his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering, Carroll was called to serve in the US Air Force as part of his ROTC commitment. After serving in the Korean War as an electronics specialist, Carroll returned to the University of Alabama and earned his Master’s degree in Physics. In 1962, Carroll married Grace Elizabeth Bears of Lexington, Massachusetts, and they immediately started raising a family. After working with the Atomic Energy Commission, Carroll took a position with the Space Sciences Laboratory at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center facility. The young family moved to Huntsville in 1966 where they established their permanent home.
During his career at NASA, Carroll had the opportunity to make major contributions to some of the most extraordinary space science achievements of the late 20th century. He played a major role in designing and developing a series of large space telescopes: the High Energy Astronomy Observatories (HEAO), Hubble Space Telescope, and the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF) that eventually became the Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO). Over the course of Carroll’s career, he was granted multiple patents for new technology he developed. Carroll was a very active member of Covenant Presbyterian Church, serving as a Trustee for multiple terms. Carroll preferred for his service to be of the hands-on variety, but behind the scenes, so he personally performed many of the plumbing, electrical, carpentry, and HVAC repair tasks for the church and camps facilities. Carroll and his wife, Grace, made strong and enduring friendships with other members of the Covenant Church community. Carroll earned a varsity letter in tennis while at the University of Alabama, and this led to a life-long love of the sport. He was an active participant in the Huntsville Industrial Tennis League for many years and enjoyed playing tennis with others throughout the city. He remained a highly competitive player until his retirement from the sport. Carroll also loved the outdoors – backpacking and camping in mountains throughout the country. He hiked the entire Appalachian Trail over several years, dividing it into sections to allow him to share parts of the journey with family and friends. Another of Carroll’s passions was the Huntsville Botanical Garden where he played a role in the early formation of the garden. Upon retirement from NASA, Carroll volunteered a great amount of time to establish the fern garden there – designing and installing the irrigation systems, selecting and obtaining fern specimens, and creating the nameplates that would identify the plants. In addition, he was a member of the Galaxy of Lights team and enjoyed his work with that group of volunteers responsible for bringing the Galaxy display to life each Christmas season. Carroll also volunteered his time and talents to other organizations in Huntsville, including Meals on Wheels, CASA, Friends, Inc, and Habitat for Humanity. Carroll lived an exceptional life filled by pursuing science and the exploration of the universe, practicing faith with his church family, adding to the natural wonders at the Botanical Garden, serving as a volunteer for numerous community organizations, and traveling throughout the country and abroad.
Carroll was preceded in death by his wife, Grace Dailey, and brother, Henry Dailey, Jr. He is survived by his son, Paul Dailey and his wife, Darlene; daughter, Susan Nyhus and her husband, Michael Nyhus; son, David Dailey and his wife, Marlee; grandchildren Julia Dailey, Anna Dailey Crim and her husband, Charlie Crim, Will Dailey, Alex Dailey, and Matt Dailey.
A memorial service for Carroll will be held at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 301 Drake Ave SE, on Saturday, February 4 at 1:00 p.m. He will be laid to rest in Maple Hill Cemetery in Huntsville.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Huntsville Botanical Garden or Covenant Presbyterian Church in Carroll’s honor.
