Charley was born on Oct 26, 1904 in Alexandria, VA; son of a dairy farmer and one of six children. His youngest sister was a school friend of Faye Purvis and she introduced them. After dating in secrecy while she was still in school, they ran away to Rockville, MD and were married on the very day Faye was to have reported to work at her very first job. She was 17 and he was 21. Needless to say she lost the job!Their son Charles was born in 1928 and their daughter Jean came along in 1930. Charley worked as a machinist at Fruit Growers Express in Alexandria. In 1940 they moved to Lansdowne, PA where he had taken a job at the US Navy Yard in Philadelphia and they remained there until the US entered the war, at which time he enlisted in the Regular Army. He received basic training at Ft Leonard Wood, MO and was subsequently assigned to the 8th Recon Tp, 8th Inf Div. In 1943 the squadron was transferred to the 11th Cavalry Group and re-designated the 44th Cavalry Mechanized Recon Squadron.

He was assigned to C Troop of the 44th and remained there until his death. The Group was deployed to Europe in 1944, where they joined 9th Army's XIIIth Corps. On April 17th, 1945 in Salzwedel, Germany, he was in a jeep enroute to a guard post when he was killed by a sniper's bullet. He had been awarded the Purple Heart on April 13th for injuries received on the 10th of April. He mailed the medal to his wife and enclosed a note dated April 16th which read: "Hi One and Only! Just a word or two to say I'm OK and still love you. Just a little remembrance or souvenir for my Honey. Please excuse the scribble. Love to all, COF. PS - Will meet you again at the spring." He was killed the next day.

Charley was born on Oct 26, 1904 in Alexandria, VA; son of a dairy farmer and one of six children. His youngest sister was a school friend of Faye Purvis and she introduced them. After dating in secrecy while she was still in school, they ran away to Rockville, MD and were married on the very day Faye was to have reported to work at her very first job. She was 17 and he was 21. Needless to say she lost the job!Their son Charles was born in 1928 and their daughter Jean came along in 1930. Charley worked as a machinist at Fruit Growers Express in Alexandria. In 1940 they moved to Lansdowne, PA where he had taken a job at the US Navy Yard in Philadelphia and they remained there until the US entered the war, at which time he enlisted in the Regular Army. He received basic training at Ft Leonard Wood, MO and was subsequently assigned to the 8th Recon Tp, 8th Inf Div. In 1943 the squadron was transferred to the 11th Cavalry Group and re-designated the 44th Cavalry Mechanized Recon Squadron.

He was assigned to C Troop of the 44th and remained there until his death. The Group was deployed to Europe in 1944, where they joined 9th Army's XIIIth Corps. On April 17th, 1945 in Salzwedel, Germany, he was in a jeep enroute to a guard post when he was killed by a sniper's bullet. He had been awarded the Purple Heart on April 13th for injuries received on the 10th of April. He mailed the medal to his wife and enclosed a note dated April 16th which read: "Hi One and Only! Just a word or two to say I'm OK and still love you. Just a little remembrance or souvenir for my Honey. Please excuse the scribble. Love to all, COF. PS - Will meet you again at the spring." He was killed the next day.