William "Bill" Nutt, Sr.

Mr. William “Bill” Eschol Nutt Sr., age 91, passed away Monday, August 3, 2026.

William Eschol Nutt Sr. was born in Lake County, Florida on November 30, 1934.

His father was Winfred E. Nutt, and his mother was Alenia Alexander Nutt. He grew up in Lake County and enjoyed going up to the Dodge County, Georgia family farm between Eastman and Cochran. He attended elementary and high school in Tavares, Florida, graduating in 1946. He played football, basketball, and baseball, and was active in 4H and FFA, showing beef and dairy cattle. He aspired to attend Georgia Tech and become an engineer.

He enrolled in Middle Georgia College in Cochran, Georgia in order to play football and begin studies in a Georgia Tech compatible program. He moved on to Georgia Tech for his second year, focusing on aeronautical and mechanical engineering. When it became obvious he could move to the University of Florida and complete college for a substantially lower cost, he moved to Gainesville and the University of Florida. There, he worked for the Engineering Expert Station while completing his undergraduate program, graduating with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering degree.

He enlisted in the US Army Reserve while at Florida, completed ROTC there, and was commissioned after graduation as a Second Lieutenant. After graduation, he accepted a job at Lockheed Martin.

After a couple of years, he enrolled in Georgia Tech in Atlanta and received a Master of Science in Industrial Management. He also completed an Emory University Graduate School of Business Administration/ Lockheed-Emory Management Institute Program.

After several years, he was selected to attend the Army War College Resident program in Carlisle, PA. Upon graduation, he was awarded an MOS of Strategist.

His military career continued with rising to the grade of Colonel and serving in Third US Army Headquarters as G3 Chief of War Plans and G3 Aviation Officer which included deployments to the Middle East theater.

He was transferred to Lockheed Aircraft Services in Ontario, California, then to Arlington, Texas, and then to Greenville, South Carolina. There, he focused on developing a helicopter modification line of business for Lockheed.

He and Janet purchased a Cedartown Georgia Farm property as a weekend getaway in the late 1980’s. The property included a cabin with a swimming pool and established pastures, as well as a small herd of beef cattle. The herd grew over the years with Red Angus, Red Simmental, and Hereford cattle.

He retired from Lockheed in 1992. He and Janet had envisioned making the farm into a small winery and weekend activity location. They made a trip to Europe to attend the German Wine Academy to broaden their knowledge of wine production.

After retiring, Bill became more interested in the cattle herd and became active in the Georgia Cattlemen’s Association and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Bill served as president of Georgia Cattlemen’s and also sat on the NCBA Cattle Health and Well Being Committee, actively participating for many years and serving terms as Chairman for a number of years. He continued to be involved in both GCA and NCBA over the years.

He was a dedicated follower of Georgia Tech Football, purchasing season football tickets for over fifty years.

He was a longtime supporter of the Cobb County Salvation Army, serving on their Advisory Board for many years. Additionally, he was a longtime member of the Board of Directors for the University of Georgia Beef Challenge.

The JanBil Farm Cattle Herd was developed into a thriving Red Angus/ Red Simmental herd based on careful genetic improvements over the years. Concurrently, Janet established a thriving flower business that sells flowers at farmer’s markets and special events.

The swimming pool is gone but JanBil Farms continues to grow and prosper with cattle and flowers.

In addition to his parents, he is preceded in death by a daughter, Juli Nutt Burchett; and sister, Sandra Nutt Tice.

Bill is survived by his beloved wife, Janet Nutt; sons: Bill Nutt, Jr. (Barbara), David Nutt (Audrey), and Alexander Nutt (Kim); grandchildren: Karen Nutt Spain, Christina Ruth Nutt, William E. Nutt, III, Ashley Nutt Clarke, Andrea Nutt, Stephanie Nutt Tessmer, Trace Nutt, and AJ Nutt; and greatgrandchildren: Kaleb Nutt Spain, Kyra Nutt Spain, Nevaeh Nutt, Nathan Clarke, Flynn Tessmer, Charles “Drake” Tessmer, Carson Andrew Nutt, and Wesley Alexander Nutt.

Funeral services to honor his life will be held Saturday, in the chapel of Smith & Miller Funeral Home, August 8, 2026, at 2:00 pm, with Captain Jose Valentin officiating and Mr. Don Westlake giving a eulogy.

The family will receive friends on Saturday at the funeral home from 12:00 PM until the service hour begins.

Interment will be held at Georgia National Cemetery on Friday, August 14, 2026, at 1:30 PM.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in his memory to the Cobb County Salvation Army.

The Smith & Miller Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Mr. William “Bill” Eschol Nutt Sr.