Rosemary D. Bevan

Rosemary D. Bevan (Prior), of Sudbury, MA, passed away on September 28, 2026, at the age of 96. Born in Merton Park, Wimbledon, London, England on October 14, 1929, she was the daughter of Thomas Frederick Prior and Gladys Harriet Mary Prior (Rennie).

A lifelong student, Rosemary demonstrated an unquenchable curiosity about the world around her that she pursued her whole life. During WWII she was sent to live in Wales for a year before returning home to London. She achieved high marks in school and went on to receive an M.B.B.S. degree from the Charing Cross Hospital Medical School at the University of London and a Diploma of Child Health in 1955.

While in medical school, she met John Bevan, who was attending the Westminster Hospital Medical School. They married in 1955. In 1957 they moved to Los Angeles, California, where John joined the faculty in the Department of Pharmacology at the UCLA Medical School. They had four children after which Rosemary joined the faculty in the 1970s at the UCLA Medical School in the Departments of Neuropathology and Pharmacology. She conducted vascular research at UCLA. In 1983, Rosemary and John accepted appointments as Professors of Pharmacology at the University of Vermont College of Medicine.

Rosemary was a pioneering researcher in vascular and cerebrovascular pharmacology with research that focused particularly on the regulation of the blood vessels of the brain, including cerebral blood flow, vascular smooth muscle, sympathetic nerve control and cerebral vasospasm. At UVM’s Totman Laboratory for Human Cerebrovascular Research, she conducted important studies of human cerebral arteries, including research involving the developing cerebral circulation of infants. She was co-editor of The Human Brain Circulation: Functional Changes in Disease, a major scholarly volume on cerebrovascular physiology and disease. She also contributed to the education and academic life of the UVM College of Medicine and was named Professor Emeritus in 1997. Rosemary was also recognized nationally for her expertise. In 1982, she served on the Cardiology Advisory Committee of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health. Her appointment reflected the national significance of her scientific contributions. At UVM College of Medicine, she was on the Committee on Graduate Education.

Rosemary had a beautiful voice and enjoyed singing in choirs. She was an avid gardener, birdwatcher, reader of novels, non-fiction and scientific journals, skier, traveller (her children dubbed her “Rosemary the Intrepid”), and enjoyed hiking, particularly in Yosemite. Her favorite flower was the iris, of which she collected and nurtured many varieties in her garden in Vermont.

Rosemary was predeceased by John who passed away in 2007. She is survived by her children Christopher, Heather, Diane and Alison and her four grandchildren Erica, Carly, Henry, Cyrus and stepgrandchildren Lianne and Andrea, and stepgreatgrandaughter, Stevie Rose.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Rosemary’s memory to Meals on Wheels