BRUNSWICK — Gail Della Smith, 77, of Brunswick, died peacefully Oct. 27 at a Scarborough health care facility.

She was born in Augusta on Dec. 28, 1936, the daughter of Richard and Claire (Brillard) Smith. A 1954 graduate of Brunswick High School, Smith received her undergraduate degree in history from the University of Maine in 1958. She subsequently earned master’s degrees in history and in education from the University of Southern Maine.

Soon after graduation, Smith began a long and successful teaching career. After three years in the Oakland schools, she joined the faculty of Bath Junior High School, where she remained until her retirement in 1992.

An enthusiastic sports fan, she was a member of the Brunswick Golf Club for 25 years, and won the Southern Maine Women’s Golf Association Metropolitan Tournament in 1984 with three teammates.

With her mother, she managed and operated the Clam Shack, a popular eatery on the former U.S. Route 1 in Brunswick. In her retirement, she also brought her culinary skills to the golf club’s kitchen, routinely cooking 75 lobsters on Fridays during golf season.

For the last several years, Gail enjoyed her job as a monitor in the athletic facilities at Bowdoin College. She also delighted in the company of her pets, most recently a handsome golden retriever, Duke, and her money cat, Pussy Galore.

Survivors include two cousins, and her good friends, Catherine and Andrew Nickas, Charlotte Hart, Richard Lord, Jane and Mark Biscoe, and the “gang from Third Floor East Chadbourne” at the University of Maine.

Services were to be private. If desired, memorial gifts in Smith’s name may be made to the Class of 1958 Scholarship Fund, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469.