CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – Former New Hampshire National Guard commander Lloyd Price has died. He was 72.

The retired Major General died Monday at his home in Concord of kidney cancer.

Price was born in Portsmouth and joined the National Guard in 1949, and became state adjutant general in 1984. He led the guard for a decade.

“He was a demanding person, a strong leader with strong standards,” said Maj. Gen. John Blair, who was his chief of staff and now heads the National Guard. “He expected people to perform and had the same standards for himself.”

Price was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in January 1953 and went on active duty with the U.S. Army until January 1955.

He worked for the Internal Revenue Service until 1973, when he was appointed by Gov. Meldrim Thomson Jr. to be the first commissioner of revenue administration for New Hampshire. He served in that position until January 1984.

In 1995, Gov. Steve Merrill appointed Price as interim commissioner of the Department of Youth Development Services.