Charles May always said he was from Kirksville, Missouri, although his birth record lists nearby Omaha. He lived in Kirksville before moving at a young age with his family to Des Moines, Iowa.
As a young man he dressed sharply and his friends gave him the ironic nickname, 'Rags'. In 1910 he was to be found working for W.E. Hartshorn digging wells, and boarding at his home. In 1915 he married Katherine O'Neill, already with two children in tow and another on the way. They had nine more children together.
In the 1920s the family lived outside the Des Moines area and farmed in the vicinity of Greene, Iowa. One of the children was killed in a school bus/train collision near Marble Rock in 1928, and by 1930 they had moved back to Des Moines. During the Great Depression, sometimes there was work to be had and sometimes not. Among the jobs he did was collect junk cars and disassemble them to sell for scrap. In the late 1930s Charles had a commercial truck and often worked delivering coal for heating to businesses and homes, including Terrace Hill which would later become the Iowa governor's mansion.
In 1944, the family moved to a farm just outside Polk County near Waukee. Charles dug a basement for their farmhouse using a team of horses (he was a teamster back when that meant you handled an actual team), and also added on to the house, which still stands along what is now Douglas Parkway.
After a life of hard work, Charles had just a year of retirement; the family moved back to Des Moines in 1951 and Charles passed away in November.
As a young man he dressed sharply and his friends gave him the ironic nickname, 'Rags'. In 1910 he was to be found working for W.E. Hartshorn digging wells, and boarding at his home. In 1915 he married Katherine O'Neill, already with two children in tow and another on the way. They had nine more children together.
In the 1920s the family lived outside the Des Moines area and farmed in the vicinity of Greene, Iowa. One of the children was killed in a school bus/train collision near Marble Rock in 1928, and by 1930 they had moved back to Des Moines. During the Great Depression, sometimes there was work to be had and sometimes not. Among the jobs he did was collect junk cars and disassemble them to sell for scrap. In the late 1930s Charles had a commercial truck and often worked delivering coal for heating to businesses and homes, including Terrace Hill which would later become the Iowa governor's mansion.
In 1944, the family moved to a farm just outside Polk County near Waukee. Charles dug a basement for their farmhouse using a team of horses (he was a teamster back when that meant you handled an actual team), and also added on to the house, which still stands along what is now Douglas Parkway.
After a life of hard work, Charles had just a year of retirement; the family moved back to Des Moines in 1951 and Charles passed away in November.
Charles May always said he was from Kirksville, Missouri, although his birth record lists nearby Omaha. He lived in Kirksville before moving at a young age with his family to Des Moines, Iowa.
As a young man he dressed sharply and his friends gave him the ironic nickname, 'Rags'. In 1910 he was to be found working for W.E. Hartshorn digging wells, and boarding at his home. In 1915 he married Katherine O'Neill, already with two children in tow and another on the way. They had nine more children together.
In the 1920s the family lived outside the Des Moines area and farmed in the vicinity of Greene, Iowa. One of the children was killed in a school bus/train collision near Marble Rock in 1928, and by 1930 they had moved back to Des Moines. During the Great Depression, sometimes there was work to be had and sometimes not. Among the jobs he did was collect junk cars and disassemble them to sell for scrap. In the late 1930s Charles had a commercial truck and often worked delivering coal for heating to businesses and homes, including Terrace Hill which would later become the Iowa governor's mansion.
In 1944, the family moved to a farm just outside Polk County near Waukee. Charles dug a basement for their farmhouse using a team of horses (he was a teamster back when that meant you handled an actual team), and also added on to the house, which still stands along what is now Douglas Parkway.
After a life of hard work, Charles had just a year of retirement; the family moved back to Des Moines in 1951 and Charles passed away in November.
As a young man he dressed sharply and his friends gave him the ironic nickname, 'Rags'. In 1910 he was to be found working for W.E. Hartshorn digging wells, and boarding at his home. In 1915 he married Katherine O'Neill, already with two children in tow and another on the way. They had nine more children together.
In the 1920s the family lived outside the Des Moines area and farmed in the vicinity of Greene, Iowa. One of the children was killed in a school bus/train collision near Marble Rock in 1928, and by 1930 they had moved back to Des Moines. During the Great Depression, sometimes there was work to be had and sometimes not. Among the jobs he did was collect junk cars and disassemble them to sell for scrap. In the late 1930s Charles had a commercial truck and often worked delivering coal for heating to businesses and homes, including Terrace Hill which would later become the Iowa governor's mansion.
In 1944, the family moved to a farm just outside Polk County near Waukee. Charles dug a basement for their farmhouse using a team of horses (he was a teamster back when that meant you handled an actual team), and also added on to the house, which still stands along what is now Douglas Parkway.
After a life of hard work, Charles had just a year of retirement; the family moved back to Des Moines in 1951 and Charles passed away in November.
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