Averill Dayton Geus, who died at home on Old Orchard Lane in East Hampton on Aug. 1, was one of the last of what East Hampton used to call its “great ladies.” In a life distinguished by personal courage and indomitable energy, she wielded considerable political and social influence through the channels of soft power available to women of her generation — as the town’s official historian; as a president of the Ladies Village Improvement Society and of the Suffolk County Historical Society; as curator at Home, Sweet Home Museum; as a teacher, and as an outspoken champion of the preservation of our built heritage.