HOUGHTON - Edwin L. Cooper, 90, died at Omega House in Houghton on Tuesday, November 3, 2009.

Edwin was born in Utica, Mich. on August 31, 1919, the son of George Edwin Cooper and Ada Anna Dentel.

He was united in marriage to Margaret E. Simmons on December 20, 1941.

He was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army in 1945 after serving in the Medical Administrative Corps in Iceland during WWII.

He received his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan. He was the director of the Pigeon River Trout Research Area near Gaylord, Mich. from 1948 to 1952, and the chief aquatic biologist at the Wisconsin Conservation Department in Madison from 1952 to 1956. He joined the faculty of the biology department at the Pennsylvania State University as an associate professor in 1956, and he was promoted to professor in 1962. He retired in 1983.

A specialist in the study of fish, especially trout, he and his colleagues produced the first computerized data bank of the fishes of Pennsylvania. The also assembled and preserved a collection of the fish of Pennsylvania. Active in numerous professional organizations, he served as president of the American Institute of Fisheries Research Biologists from 1968 to 1970 and as president of the American Fisheries Society in 1971. He is the author of numerous publications in scholarly journals and the book, Fishes of Pennsylvania and the Northeastern States.

He and his wife, Margaret, moved to The Bluffs in Houghton in 2006. He is remembered by his family and friends for his sense of humor and generosity.

Edwin is survived by his wife, Margaret; daughter, Marilyn of Houghton; son, John of Constantia, N.Y.; two sisters, Evelyn Ayres of Waterford, Mich. and Anita Mundy of Lake Orion, Mich.; as well as nieces, nephews and his many friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; two brothers, Irving and Gerald; and a sister, Bernice.

In lieu of flowers, friends may make a donation to Omega House in Houghton.

The Plowe Funeral Home in Houghton is assisting the family with the arrangements.