Carol Cone

Shelburne Falls, MA – Carol Elizabeth Cone

October 20, 1941 – April 13, 2026

Carol Cone was born on October 20, 1941, in Springfield, Massachusetts. She was the beloved daughter of Marjorie and Irwin Cone, niece of Miriam Pepperill, and sister of John I. Cone. She was preceded in death by her husband of forty years, Walton Ford Chapman.

Carol was known for her endless enthusiasms, her talent for friendship, her sense of humor, and her ability to make anything grow. She had a flair for fashion, which aimed at delight. In her 70s, she set a trend by ringleting her hair with streaks of fuchsia and aqua. Friends painted portraits of her, and a striking painting of her from the 1980s, with spiky cropped hair among tropical flora and fauna, hung in the stairway of her Victorian house on Main Street. Carol read and wrote poetry, hosted poetry workshops and reading groups, worked in the Shelburne Falls library, and read the work of others with sharpness and generosity. Wherever she lived luxurious ferns, begonias, succulents and herbs seemed to emerge magically from her green thumbs.

Born in Springfield, Carol got her undergraduate degree at Mount Holyoke and her MA in Psychology and Counseling at Antioch New England Grad School. She was a social worker who served victims of domestic abuse. She had a heart for women who had been in difficult circumstances and was always ready to listen or to connect someone in need with resources.

Carol loved Shelburne Falls and helped to shape its distinctive character. She and Walt lived on Main Street throughout the 1980s and 90s, and, for many, they were as synonymous with the town’s character as McCusker’s Market, the Foxtown Diner, or the Bridge of Flowers. Carol embodied a particular breed of New England rebel in whom a countercultural spirit met a fierce work ethic, a no-nonsense attitude, and a zeal for the zany. She and Walt Chapman met at a commune in Heath, a rural experience that they’d keep alive at their farm in Buckland, Hog Hollow, where they lovingly restored the farmhouse that had once been the 18th-century residence of Mary Lyon, a pioneer of women’s education who was also one of Carol’s ancestors. There, Carol and Walt tended an impressive organic farm, cut their own firewood, and rode his-and-hers John Deere tractors.

Carol made new friends until the end, and she was always inspiring gatherings with new ideas. She loved to get together to play Rummikub and drink quarantinis during the pandemic, and to find spicy twists to put on a Mojito or a Cosmopolitan. She was easy to buy gifts for because she liked collecting things; for years, it was flamingos, then pigs in honor of Hog Hollow.

Carol was a beloved aunt to Danielle Chapman and Christian Wiman, great-aunt to Eliza and Fiona, sister-in-law to Gayle Chapman Harmes, and cousin to Clare Chapman and Rhea Banker. She also loved and understood animals with an uncanny empathy and was the devoted mom of several inimitable cats, including Maley, and Rosemary. In later years, she and Walt adopted dogs, Moses, and then Maggie Mae, trusted and beloved companions to them both.

While illness circumscribed the last years of Carol’s life and she lost touch with many friends, she touched the lives of many in Shelburne Falls and beyond and will be deeply missed. A celebration of life for both Carol and Walt will be announced in the coming weeks. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to the Mary Lyon Foundation.