Dr. Howell Kenneth Wilson, 78, of Collinsville, Ill., born in 1937 in Savannah, Ga., died Friday, April 1, 2016, at Anderson Hospital, Maryville, Ill.

He was a native of Savannah, Ga., but had lived for many years in Collinsville, Ill. Wilson was a 1955 honor graduate of Savannah High School, a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Ga., and received his Ph.D. degree in mathematics from the University of Minnesota.

Prior to his retirement Wilson taught mathematics at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, Ill., where he had previously served as chairman of the math department. He was the author of several publications, including a textbook on differential equations.

Wilson taught at Georgia Tech University earlier in his career and was employed at the Nation's Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Knoxville, Tenn.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Howell A. and Annabelle, nee Ellis, Wilson; and a son, Howell Wilson Jr.

Surviving are his daughter, Pamela McCraney of Elgin, Ill.; a brother, Jack Wilson of Savannah, Ga.; and very dear friends, Alan and A.Y. Bowers of Swansea Ill.

Services: At his request, cremation rights will be accorded.