J. Sydney Stone, a retired lawyer and a former board member of Avon Products, died Tuesday in the Glynn-Brunswick Memorial Hospital in Brunswick, Ga. Mr. Stone, who lived in Sea Island, Ga., and had a summer home in Greensboro, Vt., was 79 years old.
He was born in Ypsilanti, Mich., and lived for many years in Bronxville, N.Y. He was a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. He joined the law firm of Breed, Abbot & Morgan in 1926 and became a partner in 1934. He retired in 1967.
Mr. Stone was a member of the Avon board from 1942 until 1974. He also served as a director of Roosevelt Raceway and was a president of the Bronxville Public Library. He was a past president and a member for more than 40 years of the Anglers Club of New York.
He is survived by his wife, Mary; a son, John C. 2d of Princeton, N.J.; a daughter, Virs. C. Paul Slater of Bronxville, and four grandchildren.