Ralph S. O'Neill, age 106, passed away peacefully at his home in Custer, SD, on December 18, 2013.

Ralph was born November 18, 1907, in Folsom, SD, the oldest of seven sons born to Fritz and Lola O'Neill. The family homesteaded on Spring Creek in 1879. Ralph attended primary school at the Wilcox School on the Wilcox homestead. He graduated from Rapid City High School in 1927, and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from South Dakota School of Mines & Technology in 1936. In 1937, he married Charlotte Roebuck in Mitchell, SD.

He began working for the Bridge Division of the South Dakota Highway Department in Pierre, SD, where he worked for 38 years, from 1936 to 1974. He then went to work for Aaron Swan & Associates Engineering in Pierre from 1975 to 1996. He and Charlotte retired to Custer in 1980.

Ralph was a member of the American Society of Professional Engineers. While living in Pierre, Ralph was active in the First Baptist Church. He attended the Custer Community Church and was a member of the Rapid City Elks Lodge #1187, the Custer Masonic Lodge #66 and the Rapid City Naja Shriners.

Survivors include his four children, Kenneth O'Neill of Texas; Eileen Cofell of Custer; Randall O'Neill of Rapid City; Charlene McCoy of Lead, SD; five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Charlotte at the age of 79; and his six brothers, Marion, Walter, Owen, Wayne, Francis and Loren.

Visitation will be held from 12:00 until 1:30 p.m., Saturday, December 21, 2013, at McColley's Chapel of the Hills in Custer, with Masonic Rites beginning at 1:30 p.m.

In lieu of flowers a memorial has been established for the Folsom Fire Department and Community Center: PO Box 667, Custer, SD 57730.