Charles Carpenter Bates (1918 - 2016)

Born 4 Nov 1918 in Harrison, Winnebago, Illinois,

Ancestors

Husband of Pauline B (Barta) Bates — married 11 Jul 1942 in Lincoln, Lancaster, Nebraska, United States

Died 9 Jul 2016 at age 97 in Green Valley, Pima County, Arizona

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Jerry Finnegan [send private message]

Biography

Charles Carpenter Bates was born 4 Nov 1918^[1][2] in Harrison Township, ILL. He was the son of Carl and Vera (Carpenter) Bates.^[3] (He often used his middle name to differentiate himself from his grandfather.) Because of the prevalence of the Spanish Flu, Vera was advised NOT to come to the hospital for the delivery. Instead, arrangements were made for Carl's cousin, Dr. Clarence Boswell, to come, with a nurse, to the Bates farm for the big event.^[1]

From the time Charles learned to toddle, he was a handful. Being the oldest child he had the rare opportunity to present his mother with challenges she had not yet seen. When he was but a year old, he managed to fall out of a second story window. Luckily he glanced off of a pitched awning and landed just clear of a cement sidewalk. To be sure he had his mother's attention, he repeated the stunt at the age of four, this time from the second floor of a new shed. Again, no injuries.^[1]

Shortly after that episode, Vera had a nervous breakdown after losing a still-born child at full term. She was sent to an uncle's farm in Iowa and when ready to return home, Charles and his father took the first train ride of the youth's young life. That trip was also Charles' first movie experience; a silent movie with two steam locomotives running head-on into each other while the house musician played dramatic music to build the excitement for the audience.^[1]

In September, 1924 Charles began his long, illustrious education, at Harrison school. He had already learned to read and took quickly to the study routine, favoring having his nose in a book over most other options.^[1]

In late summer of 1925, at the age of six, he had the unusual opportunity to accompany his father, Carl, on his Grandparents honeymoon. Thirty-seven years prior, the grandparents wedding trip had been cut very short when Charles Sr.'s father, Erastus, had been found dead in his field, passing away from a heart ailment.^[1]

The trip to visit relatives in the upper-east states was to take place in mid-September. Because of the timing it was necessary to secure permission from young Charles' school for his absence. It turned out to be less of a problem than one would expect. First, he attended Conklin School (a.k.a. District 15) which was so small it operated on an annual budget of one thousand dollars, supplied by the ten nearby farming families. It had a three-man school board, of which Carl was an annual appointee - no problem getting permission there. Secondly, the small one-room school house noted that Charles had not only excelled in first grade but was simultaneously, in geography and history, the top student in fourth grade.^[1]

Charles was a brilliant student and, like many students who came out of the one-room school houses, credits the early exposure to "higher education" as the helping hand he needed early on to remain challenged. (All eight grades taught in the same room allowed students to study alongside their peers, while also joining in the studies of more advanced subjects from the higher grades.) Charles was able to skip two grades out of eight, and entered high school at the age of 11. An Eighth Grade "pre-final report" dated May 1930 shows the soon-to-be freshman performing in various subjects at an education level consistent with students ages 16 (in Orthography and Grammar) through "over 20" (in Geography and Physiology). He was ready for the challenge.^[1]

Charles was taught from a very early age that if you wanted to get anything out of life you had to be willing to work for it (a lesson learned by virtually everyone that was ever raised on a farm.) One thing that he knew he really wanted was a college education. To build a college savings fund he pitched in wherever he could. He would gather walnuts in the fall, shuck them, and then sell them door-to-door in Rockford. He would ride by horseback over a six-mile area taking orders for, and then delivering, Christmas cards. In the summer, when he had completed his chores, he would bike to the Macktown Golf Course where he would caddy for $.25/nine holes. He also sold any excess milk the farm produced. The milk was separated into cream and skim-milk, both of which he sold.^[1]

Charles had two pre-college role-models to look up to. The first was his Great Uncle Charles Boswell, who, as attending physician at the Bates Centennial farm, had delivered him into the world. Charles was a big fan of the life-style of the successful doctor and his wife.^[1]

Second was Oren Loomis, the principal of Hononegah High. Dr. Loomis had, a decade or more earlier, volunteered to drive ambulance on the Western Front during WWI. But he had showed courage in other more real-world ways too. When it became known that a history teacher's final exam had been passed around prior to test day, and the entire Junior class had cheated extensively, Dr. Loomis made the very unpopular decision to suspend the entire class until the fall, when they would return to find out what punishment would be meted out. This gave the class ample time to "think about what you've done."^[1]

Charles was able to attend DePauw University in 1935-1936, attaining grades high enough to garner a Rector scholarship^[4] for the remainder of his college career. He changed his major from Chemistry to Geology and graduated cum laude. Never one to sit idle, he also worked while in college, both as a dishwasher at a girl's dormitory and serving as a co-manager of the University's bowling alley.^[1]

By the fall of 1939, Charles was working on a seismograph exploration crew attached to Carter Oil Co. in Mississippi, even before he graduated from college. The money earned went into a joint account he held with his father at the Beloit Savings Bank. But when his father lost two of his farm horses in a period of only a few months, Carl took the money to buy a new tractor at a farm sale.^[1]

In mid-March 1941, Charles received a gift from his Uncle Sam - a low draft number. He was sent to Ft. Sill, OK. as a lowly private. By the spring of 1942 he was made a sergeant in the 2nd Field Artillery Observation Battalion and then assigned to Brooks field in San Antonio, TX.^[1][4]

On 11 Jul 1942 Charles married Patricia "Bartie" Barta^[3] in Lincoln, NE.,^[5] and was then immediately shipped off to begin training as a weather officer at UCLA. Although the couple lived in the L.A. area while he attended classes, the last two months were conducted at the University of Chicago,^[4] close enough to home that his parent's and mother-in-law were able to see him graduate at the top of his UCLA class, immediately receiving a commission as second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Force on 10 May 1943.^[1]Eventually Charles would hold degrees in Geology, Meteorology and oceanography from DePauw University (1939),^[4] UCLA (1943), Scripps Institute of Oceanology (1943), and a PH.D. from Texas A&M (1952).

From that time forward, things were moving quickly, with Charles traveling all around the northern hemisphere while being "assigned to" the pentagon but loaned out freely to other entities, and Bartie living in the Maryland suburbs near Washington D.C.^[1]He became a specialist in sea swell and surf forecasting for amphibious invasions. for the 8th, 10th, 20th and 21st Weather Squadrons during WWII.^[1]

It was reported that, while riding together in the limousine en route to the inauguration of newly elected President john Kennedy, President Dwight Eisenhower stressed that one of the major reasons the D-Day invasion succeeded was that "the U.S. had better meteorologist than the Germans." Bates explained "...wave forecasting was a critical factor in the beachhead supply operation. Below 2 foot waves, no effect. Above that, unloading rates fell steadily off until down to about 15% of capacity at 6-foot waves." Like a well-oiled NASCAR pit crew, they had studied the effects of wave and water depth on the time it took to land and unload a landing craft. They knew that high waves would bring the invasion to a halt. And they had to give the Go Ahead 24 hours in advance to get all the pieces in place. Once the invasion fleet launched, there'd be no turning back and thousands of lives at stake.^[1][6]

To open a larger window for forecasting, the U.S. had 10 weather ships scattered across the North Atlantic. (Germany had none.) In addition, there were 55 weather observation stations along the British coast reporting three times daily how big the waves were. They also gathered information from people along the French Coast. The invasion was originally scheduled for late May, 1944. It was delayed to June 5th, then the 6th because of high winds and waves. Ike listened to his team. He wanted a five-day forecast but at the time only a 36-hour window could be predicted accurately. The U.S. Army Air Force forecasters (Charles Bates and his partner) were one of three pairs of forecasters, the other two being the RAF and the British Royal Navy. The RAF disagreed with the others when a 6 Jun "Go Ahead" was issued, but Ike stuck to his forecaster's guns. For his five-day weather forecast, Charles was awarded the Bronze Star.^[1][4][6]

In the spring of 1944, while on temporary duty with the Admiralty's Fleet Forecast Central two floors underground at the Citadel, Charles had been introduced to the King (George VI) and Queen of England.^[4] He would later be the sole surf forecaster on board throughout the night that the Allies invaded Normandy.^[1]

In late January, 1945, he was in Ceylon where he received the Bronze Star at Ratmalana AFB,^[4] then in May he was in India. On to China in June, the Philippines in July and in November, an invasion command ship in Kyushu, Japan.^[1]

After the war, the family would remain in the general vicinity of Washington D.C. as he was a government official specializing in using earth science for the benefit of the nation and the world. His activities covered much of the globe outside of the Soviet bloc. His accomplishments were numerous, and he has been listed in Who's Who in America as far back as 1968.^[1]

Recognition and awards were always on the horizon. for example:

He was a member of the "Pole Vaulters" by virtue of his flight over the North Pole, 11 Aug 1949.^[1]

He was present for the implementation of the Antarctic inspection Treaty of 1963 and named U.S. Antarctic Observer #001 under terms of the Antarctic Treaty's Article VII by Secretary of State Dean Rusk on Nov. 12, 1963.^[1][4]

He received the Departmental Silver Medal for Meritorious Achievement (1971) from the U.S. Coast Guard where he was the Science Advisor, which garnered him "General and Flag Officer Dining Room" privileges at the Pentagon Restaurant.^[1]

He and Bartie attended receptions in their honor held by the Ambassador of Iceland, the Prime minister of Japan, General and Mrs. Robert Barrow (a Marine Corps four-star general).^[1]

To see the fruits of a grand career is rewarding. To think that all of this came from a farm-boy from little Rockton, ILL. is impressive. He retired in 1979, and the pair moved to Green Valley, AZ. During his retirement he wrote "Geophysics in the Affairs of Man" (Pergamon Press, 1982), "America's Weather Warriors, 1814-1985" (Texas A&M Press, 1986), "Geophysics in the Affairs of Mankind" (Society of Exploration Geophysicists, 2001), and "Hydro to NavOceano: 175 Years of Ocean Survey and Prediction by the U.S. Navy" (Cornfield Press, 2006). He also penned "The Bates Centennial Farm of Rockton, IL., (1857-1990s), Antecedents-Stewards-Offshoots (Corn Field Press, 1993),^[1] from which much of the information for this biography was obtained.

On 11 Jul 1992, the couple enjoyed a whitewater rafting adventure with family on the Rio Grande as part of their 50th wedding anniversary celebration.^[1]

His wonderful wife passed away in January, 2016. On 9 Jul of that year, Charles passed away from the ravages of old age while residing at the La Posada retirement complex, Green Valley, AZ.^[3][4]

The two of them are again together in the Phillips Cemetery on Bates Road in Rockton, just down the road apiece from the Centennial Farm where he was born and raised, and in the same cemetery where generations before him have been laid to rest.

Technical Innovations Involving Charles Bates:^[1]

1943 First class to study military oceanography (member of a class of eight pioneers) - Air Weather service-Scripts Institution of Oceanography

1943 First weather officer to make non-stop North Atlantic winter-time weather reconnaissance flight, Newfoundland-Scotland-Newfoundland - 8th Weather Squadron-American Airlines^[6]

1944 Three man "Swell forecast Section", British Admiralty, to forecast surf for Normandy Invasion - 21st Weather Squadron-British Naval Weather Branch^[4]

1945 First India-China weather convoy over the Burma Road (Convoy Commander- Capt. Charles Bates) - 10th Weather Squadron^[4]

1946 First full-time executive assistant to C-G Rossby, president of the American Meteorology Society

1947 Formation of Bates & Glenn, industrial weather firm forecasting for offshore oil companies

1949 Creation of Artic ice observation and forecasting service (program manager - Charles Bates) - U.S. Naval Hydrographic office/Royal Canadian Air Force

1953 President's award for Best Technical Paper "Rational Theory of Delta Formation"

1957-1960 Project TIROS, the world's first weather satellite (technical Steering Group - Dr. Charles Bates) - Advanced Research Projects Agency/NASA

1960-1964 VELA Uniform - Research Program to improve detection of underground nuclear explosions (Program manager- Dr. Charles Bates - Advanced Research Projects Agency/Office - Secretary of Defense

1966-1968 Inter-governmental Spacecraft Oceanography Program (technical Steering Group - Dr. Charles Bates co-chairman)

1969-1979 Creation of U.S. Coast Guard research and development program (Deputy Chief - Office of R&D- Dr. Charles Bates) U.S. Coast Guard

1969-1974 U.S. - Japan Cooperative Program in Natural Resources (Marine Technology Panel - Dr Charles Bates, co-chairman) U.S. State Department/Japanese Science and Technology Agency

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28} The Bates Centennial Farm of Rockton, Illinois, (1857-1990s), Antecedents-Stewards-Offshoots, by Charles Carpenter Bates, published 1993 by Corn Field Press of Rockton, ILL.
2. ↑ Winnebago County, Illinois, U.S., Births, 1857-1937
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} U.S., Cemetery and Funeral Home Collection, 1847-Current
4. ↑ ^{4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10} Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/167220381/charles-c-bates: accessed 29 September 2022), memorial page for Dr Charles C. Bates (1919–9 Jul 2016), Find a Grave Memorial ID 167220381, citing Phillips Cemetery, Rockton, Winnebago County, Illinois, USA; Maintained by jerri noller (contributor 47003463)
5. ↑ U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2} Stateline Area Heores, Honoring Veterans from all Conflicts, Published 2009 by the Rockton township Historical Society, Marilyn Mohring and Judy Bates co-contributors