Charles Elvin Williamson (1926-2009) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree

Charles Elvin Williamson

Born 5 Dec 1926 in Portsmouth, Virginia, United States

Ancestors

Son of Lloyd Glenn Williamson and Edith Allison (Hunter) Williamson

Husband of Susannah Bryan (Lyons) Williamson — married 26 Jul 1952 in Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Father of Mike Williamson and David Williamson

Died 12 Jan 2009 at age 82 in Bel Air, Harford, Maryland

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Mike Williamson

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Profile last modified 20 Apr 2024 | Created 30 May 2021

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Biography

Charles Elvin Williamson was born of Lloyd Glend Williamson and Edith Allison Hunter on December 5, 1926 in Portsmouth, Va. His earliest recollection was living in a small frame cottage at 418 Naval Place (aka Gosport) adjacent to the home of his grandfather, Charles Leonard Williamson, his second wife, Mary Conners, and his cousin, Susie Reid, formally of Richmond, Va. He is age 3.5 enumerated at 418 'Gosport Road', Portsmouth City with his parents and brother adjacent to his grandfather and second wife in 1930^[1]. Following his grandfather's death in 1938, his parents moved to his grandfather's larger home adjacent to the small cottage where he as 'Elvin' is enumerated age13 at 422 Naval Place (renamed from Gosport) with his brother in 1940^[2].

Charles attended the Thomas Jefferson School at Fifth and Jefferson Streets in the Newtown area of Portsmouth (South Portsmouth). It was a seven-year elementary school. He then attended Woodrow Wilson High School on High Street for two years where schoolwork was low on his priorities. This was in 1942 during World War II when the military was very popular. He met a friend who attended a military preparatory school, Randolph Macon Academy, in Front Royal, Va. and convinced his parents that this was where he should be. They agreed despite the financial burden.

During this period he also worked as a clerk in the Naval Pharmacy where he mainly operated the soda fountain. Shortly before this in 1941 he had a newspaper route in the Norfolk Navy Yard in Portsmouth where he sold papers to civilian workers, marines in the Marine Barracks, and to Navy ships as they docked for repairs. Many of them were British at this time and had been damaged by the German Navy. After the United States entered the conflict most of the ships visiting the Navy Yard were U.S. This was an impressive period where ships arrived with many bodies trapped below the waterlines owing to flooding of watertight compartments by torpedoes or bombs. Bodies were removed when the ships were in dry-docks. Papers were delivered to the quarterdecks of these ships.

For the next three years (1942-1945) he was very busy with studies, military training and always active in sports mainly wrestling and football. He graduated during in 1945 and was drafted into the Army immediately, sent to Fort Knox, Ky. where he trained in the operation of armored vehicles, including half tracks and tanks. He was trained to take part in the invasion of Japan but with the advent of the atomic bomb Japan surrendered and he was assigned to the 1st Armored Division in Germany. Within a few months he was reassigned to the Medical Detachment where he attended patients daily in the absence of a physician and rose to Surgical Technician Third Class. He was discharged in December 1946.

Charles returned to his schooling immediately, attending William and Mary - Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI) at St. Helena, Va., a temporary overflow facility to accommodate the many returning veterans. After one year there he attended William and Mary - VPI College (now Old Dominion University) in Norfolk, Va. His third and forth years were spent at William and Mary College in Williamsburg, Va. where he majored in organic chemistry and graduated in the spring of 1950. He went to work as a chemist in the Chemical Laboratory at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va. He has not yet been located in the census of 1950 and not enumerated with his parents^[3] but certainly busy chasing his future bride in Williamsburg where she is enumerated as 'Student'.

In 1950 at the latter college he met his future wife, Susannah Bryan Lyons. They were married on July 26, 1952^[4]. After their marriage Charles left Portsmouth, took a position at the Chemical and Radiological Laboratories at Edgewood, Md. a part of Edgewood Arsenal. They lived on Mary Avenue in Baltimore. At this time Susannah was studying at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. In 1953 they moved to Edgewood.

After several years Charles became involved in a cancer research program1 and became associated with the Sinai Hospital of Baltimore and the Johns Hopkins Hospital, Departments of Surgery in both. After several years he resumed his education at the John’s Hopkins University and in 1970 received his Ph.D. degree in biochemistry/organic chemistry. In this research early cancer chemotherapeutic agents were synthesized, tested in various ways and patients were treated. He was the author or co-author of numerous research papers published in various scientific and medical journals and also several patents during this period. The project lasted approximately twenty years at which time several of Charles’ associates died. The group dissolved and effective continuation was impossible.

Charles had a greenhouse at his home in Bel Air, Md. which he and his family had built in about 1963. His lifelong hobby was growing orchids from sterile cultures in flasks and also mature plants in pots. He retired from the Laboratories at Edgewood in the summer of 1979 and opened a tissue culture laboratory to clone rare orchid plants. This was mainly a mail-order operation but mature plants were also available for retail sale. This facility operated as Jungle Gems, Inc. from 1975 to 19952. Cultures were shipped worldwide on a routine basis. Many customers found it amusing that these cultures were regularly shipped to Hawaii where they were grown larger and sold to tourists. Orchid growing kits containing a culture of small plants plus potting medium and instructions were also shipped internationally. After the close of Jungle Gems life became more relaxed. The children were grown and on their own; household chores were shared and it was time to travel, play and party. Dancing lessons were begun, cabarets were frequent and a new set of friends made it fun. ^[5]