Edward (“Ed,” “Eddie”) C. Bissell passed away on April 13, 2026, at Mount Nittany Medical Center in State College, Pennsylvania, following an illness of several months. Ed was born December 1938 in Erie, Pennsylvania, to Ethel O. (Briggs) Bissell and Loren E. Bissell.
Ed graduated from Meadville (Pennsylvania) High School in 1956 and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Allegheny College and a Ph.D. in x-ray crystallography in physical chemistry from Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, Ohio. He worked as a research assistant in chemistry labs at The University of Illinois and The Pennsylvania State University. He soon landed a job working for PSU Management Services as a Systems Analyst where he worked for 28 years, retiring in 1999.
Throughout his years in State College, Ed pursued his passion for contract bridge, traveling throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico to compete in bridge tournaments. He ultimately became an ACBL Platinum Life Master. He was well-known for his bridge skills and also well-liked by many for his witty sense of humor.
“Eddie” is survived by his two children, Adrian (Bissell) Major and Allison (Bissell) Zimmerman, his cherished sister Jean (Bissell) Jones, his five nephews, his niece, numerous grandnephews and grandnieces, and his ex-spouse, Ann (Angel) Eberhardt. He was preceded in death by his parents (Loren and Ethel Bissell), his beloved brother-in-law, James Jones, and other relatives and friends.
Online condolences can be shared at the website of PA Simple Cremation. For those who would like to honor Eddie, memorial donations may be made to WPSU radio in his memory: https://wpsu.org/donate/pledge/