Oceanport, N.J.—“Ernie is a rare person; totally dedicated, very competitive and always honest and fair in his endeavors. He is the spirit of Mohawk,” said Herbert L. Shuttleworth II, Mohawk chairman, during an interview in the early 1960s. In his 46 years in the carpet industry, colleagues and competitors alike admired and respected Ernest Conner, who died at his home here on Dec. 14 of congestive heart failure. He was 90.

Conner was born in Scotland and came to the United States with his parents when he was 13. The family settled in Long Island City, N.Y., and shortly after, his father died and he had to work after school to help support the family. He graduated from high school and when World War II erupted, he joined the Army Air Corps and served in the CBI—China Bur-ma India—theater of operations, flying daily missions over the Hump (Himalayas).

After his discharge from military service, Conner joined Mohawk Carpet Mills and made it a career. He worked his way up and after compiling a distinguished record became Mohawk’s national contract sales manager. He traveled extensively throughout the country, so it was serendipitous that he met Edna Nervi, a secretary at Mohawk, and the couple married in 1948. They lived on Long Is-land for almost 50 years, first in Port Washington and then in East Moriches. In 2001, the relocated to Oceanport.

After his retirement from Mohawk, he formed Ernest Conner Consulting in Port Washington and ran it successfully for more than 10 years, when he retired again and permanently. He loved boating, fishing and golf and was an avid gardener.

Survivors include his wife, Edna; daughters Gail Gallagher of Oceanport and Laurie of Menlo Park, Calif.; a brother, James, of Weston, Conn., and grandson, Grant LeRoy of Menlo Park.