CHARDON – Charles Edward Crompton age 93, of Chardon, passed away Aug. 2, 2016, at University Hospital Geauga Medical Center after a short illness.
Charles was born Oct. 8, 1922, on St. George Island, in the Pribilof Islands in Alaska, as the first non-native child. He left Alaska as a baby with his parents, C. Edward and Georgia Crompton, to live in San Francisco, Calif.
He was a star athlete in junior high school, setting a 10-second 100-yard dash record.
While in San Francisco, he learned to sail and loved sailing in the bay. This love of sailing remained with him throughout his life.
Charles attended college at the University of California Berkley, where he studied chemistry and nuclear physics. He went on to receive his Ph.D. in Chemistry at the University of Tennessee, while working on the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
There, he met and married Mary Ruth Oxendine in September 1945. They had a son, Stephen Edward, while living in Tennessee, and later a daughter, Lindy, while working for the U.S. Testing Labs of the Atomic Energy Commission in Teaneck, N.J.
Charles’ work as an organic chemist specializing in nuclear isotopes and catalysts took him to many places throughout his career in the U.S. and abroad.
He and his family lived in Oak Ridge, Teaneck, Hamilton, Ohio, Towson, Md., Chagrin Falls, Chicago, Ill., Rehoboth Beach, Del., Maryville, Tenn., Vero Beach, Fla., Lexington, Ky., and Chardon.
He and Mary travelled extensively in the U.S. and abroad, experiencing other cultures.
He also was the inventor on multiple patents.
Charles was active in Rotary and Kiwanis throughout his life and held many chairs.
He was a lover of the arts and an exceptional artist who was accomplished in metal etching, painting and woodcarving. In his later years, he produced many exquisite carvings of birds and fish.
Charles also enjoyed playing piano, organ and accordion. He was an avid fisherman and outdoorsman.
Charles is survived by his son, Stephen (Elaine), of Chardon; daughter, Lindy, of Frankfort, Ky.; grandchildren, Elizabeth, of Arlington, Va., and Matthew, of Sydney, Australia.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Mary, in 2006.
Visitation is 5-7 p.m. Aug. 8 at Top of FormMcCammon-Ammons-Click Funeral Home, 220 W. Broadway Ave., Maryville, Tenn.
A graveside funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Aug. 9 at Clarksgrove Cemetery in Maryville, Tenn., where he will be interred next to his wife.
Arrangements by Burr Funeral Home of Chardon and McCammon-Ammons-Click Funeral Home of Maryville, Tenn. Information and condolences online at www.burrservice.com.