Chatting with Charlotte
by Cate Murway

More recognition should be given to our great generation of senior citizens. We owe them our thanks and a heartfelt salute. Their life experiences have become our life lessons and a message for the future generations.

Charlotte May [named for her mother’s eldest sister, Aunt Mary, who used May for a nickname] [Rathke] Doan, BHS ’37 was born on Pond Street and then lived in Harriman. She has agreed to share some of her memories that helped define what has been called the Greatest Generation. 
So, stop, listen, and look back.

Charlotte’s paternal grandparents, Gustav A. and Augusta Rathke emigrated from Germany in the mid 1800’s and she remembers that they still spoke German in their home.
Mr. Otto Haas [1872-1960], a friend of her grandfather’s, inspired them to come to America. Otto was the co-founder of the Röhm and Haas Company, known as the "benevolent dictator”, as he had the ability to instill a healthy fear in his employees while always being fair and concerned for their welfare. He told her grandparents about Bristol and informed them that there were unsurpassed opportunities here. Gustav Rathke found a position at the Thomas L. Leedom & Company and became the head of the sales department for that carpet pioneer. 

Charlotte’s WWI veteran Grandfather who was stationed in Camp Meade, later Fort Meade, named for Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade; and her father, WWII Army veteran Charles Rathke were friends of Senator Joseph Ridgway Grundy [1863 –1961].
When her grandfather passed away, Senator Grundy, who was the proprietor of the Bristol Worsted Mills, took her father under his wing.
Their connection had been political. At that time, the government of the borough was vested in a Burgess and the Town Council of twenty members, four being from each ward. Joseph R. Grundy and Gustav Rathke were two of the representatives of the Second Ward.
Later on her father “was President of the Council for quite a few years.”

Her maternal grandfather, John F. Smoyer, Sr. was part owner of the Keystone Dairy Company.
“The Keystone Dairy Company is preparing to move its present quarters in the plant of the Artesian Ice and Coal Company into the newly erected brick plant on the east side of Pond Street, between Washington and Lafayette Streets. The new building is built according to modern and sanitary plans.”  January 1922 Bristol Courier

Charlotte is a member of the Bristol Methodist Church and has been since she was twelve. Her parents were married in that church.
Charles Gustav and Suzie Herbret [Smoyer] Rathke were both born in Bristol and attended the Borough schools. Charlotte is the first born of their children.
“I was awarded a 4 year scholarship to a university in Iowa but my parents couldn’t afford the train fare, I couldn’t go. That has always bugged me.”
Charlotte received her diploma from the Bristol Elk/ author of “History of Bristol, Penn.”, Doron Green, who was the President of the School Board, along with a $5.00 award as a member of the 54th graduating class “showing the greatest dependability in discharging responsibilities”.

R.N. Margaret Eva [Rathke] Wentz is three years younger. Valedictorian Peg won the coveted Grundy Medal at her 1941 graduation and her 96.633 was the highest average ever until very recently. The youngest, L.P.N. Alma Elizabeth [Rathke] Erb, is a decade younger.  “I missed a lot of Alma’s childhood.”

Charlotte’s mother graduated from “West Chester State School” [renamed West Chester State Teachers College in 1927] and taught in Tullytown. She later attended Peirce School of Business Administration in Philadelphia to prepare to work as a secretary for the PA RR.

When her father returned from the service and before he started his own electrical business, he worked as an electrician in the massive Grundy Power House situated on the west corner of Jefferson Avenue and Canal Streets. That building housed the boilers and generators that provided power to the wool and worsted yarn factories known as the Grundy Mill Complex constructed along the Delaware Canal. The Grundy Mills employed more than 850 workers by 1915, making it the largest employer in Bucks County.
He wasn’t all business. Her father performed in amateur minstrel shows. “He was a lot of fun!”

Charlotte can vividly remember the Great Depression.
Her mother sewed all her clothes, “jumper things with blouses”, on a treadle sewing machine. She believes they did their best to keep it from them that they were not well off. 
“My dad did electrical work for neighbors but they paid him in chickens. He had to pay for supplies with money. My parents sacrificed a lot for us in the Depression.”

They had cheese sandwiches for lunch, and often tuna and fresh peas in a flour and white milk sauce for dinner.
“My dad made sure that my mother had the first electric things that came out. We had the first electric stove on metal legs and the first electric washing machine in Bristol.”
She recalled, “The ice man would come with his tongs and place the ice block in the wooden cabinet with the big door when we lived with my grandparents.” 
They roller skated on side streets. “When we were growing up, there were no sidewalks. There were two twelve inch wide boards, side by side.”

Charlotte currently lives on what used to be a country road that ran out to Senator Grundy’s brownstone family homestead, Walnut Grove Farm, in Bristol Township on the Neshaminy Creek. She would accompany her father when he went out to visit Joe Grundy. His housekeeper would keep an eye on her. She has happy memories of “sliding down the rails of his beautiful big staircase that went up to the second floor.” Senator Grundy kept cows and horses on his farm.
Charlotte also remembers the copper bathtub in his Radcliffe Street home.

Charles Henry Doan and Charlotte knew each other from “early Sunday school days”
WWII Army CPL. Charles Doan exuded courage as he crossed from North Africa into Sicily.






















He was in a reconnaissance outfit in a military halftrack vehicle with eleven other soldiers, sent on a mission to assure superiority in the area, and they were trapped behind German lines. 
They were rescued by General Bernard L. Montgomery’s troops. He later was a guard on a ship with prisoners of war before he landed in Norfolk, VA.
To prevent battle fatigue, he did not go back into combat, but was sent to rehab in a Utah facility.
He was stationed in Monteray, CA and they lived there together for a time.

Their daughter, Sue Ann Yocum, is a grant writer and administrator in the Pottstown school district, and their son, Carl Henry Doan, retired from the State of NJ treasury department. 
They have 2 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren.

Charlotte worked for the lawyers, Hugh B. Eastburn, William J. Begley and John P. Fullam at the Eastburn, Begley & Fullam Law Firm on Radcliffe Street.
She especially enjoyed working with John Fullam and his adoption cases. 
When the Harvard law school graduate became the Senior Judge Fullam of the US District Court- Eastern of PA, she changed careers. 
Her friend, Don Moyer, who had been the VP of PA Trust Company, opened a bank in what was then known as Levittown, NJ. She became the secretary to the President for that first bank.
She also worked at the Leedom's plant right after graduation.







































When her husband completed his military stint, he worked as a welder for US Steel and then at a concrete plant for a short time before opening his own sand and gravel pit in Berlin, NJ. Charles’ specialty product was pure white silica sand that was used for glass making.
Her husband passed away in 1989.

When Charlotte was 90, she took a trip with her children to trace areas where their father had been stationed, as well as surrounding sights, including Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Big Sur, San Francisco, and along the coast and back to Reno.
 “It was two wonderful weeks, reliving two years.”

Charlotte is the treasurer of the Bristol Chapter Order of Eastern Star on Cedar Street.
Her father and grandfather were Masons and Eastern Star is opened to female relatives. 
Last weekend, she helped host a fundraising pasta dinner at the Lower Bucks Senior Activity Center on Wood Street.
Charlotte cherishes and shares her trinkets of life-learned wisdom.
Hindsight provides perspective on what’s truly important.


Recommend a “Spotlight”. E-mail vjmrun@yahoo.com
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Charlotte w/ Charles' 1941 Plymouth
Charlotte Rathke
5.30.1922
Charlotte w/ her friend Helen at the Bristol train station
Charlotte Mary [Rathke] Doan
M/M Charles Henry Doan
back row from left: Warren Woodruff, Ruth Lynch, James Farnan, Dot Patterson, John Brehm, Charlotte, Harley Davies, Mary McGee, Stanley Moore, Violet Burton, Mr. Coughlin, Winnie Kelly, Joseph Hampton, Carrie Rapp, 
Mr. LaRue

front row from left: Eddie McIlvaine, Wayne Fry, Evald Caullivine, George Talbot, Mr. Buckman, Mr. Morookian, 
Mr. Wexler, Jack Mulligan
Margaret “Peg” R. Wentz of Levittown, Pa., 
passed peacefully into God’s loving arms April 4, 2019
surrounded by family and friends. She was 95. She was born and raised in Bristol, Pa. Peg was Valedictorian at both Bristol High and Abington Nursing Schools. Peg went on to attend Trenton State College where she earned her Master’s degree in Social Work. She retired as a school nurse for Bristol Township School District. Peg was a lifelong member of First United Methodist Church of Bristol, Pa., where she started a prayer group, taught Sunday School and was a member of the bell choir. She was also a member of the Eastern Star, Neshaminy Chapter #374. She was an avid reader and loved knitting prayer shawls, feeding the birds and tending to her rose garden. Peg often lead a water aerobics class at the YMCA on Saturdays until she was 90 years old. She enjoyed her Saturday breakfast at IHOP and going out to lunch after church on Sundays. Peg will be remembered as the “pillar of strength” to her family. She was a loving and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother and dear friend who will be deeply missed. Peg was preceded in death by her parents, Charles G. and Susie H. (Smoyer) Rathke, and her beloved husband, James L. Wentz. She is survived by her children, Robert J. Wentz, Louise A. Wentz, and Mark S. Wentz; grandson, Sean R. Wentz; sisters, Charlotte M. Doan and Alma E. Erb; several loving nieces and nephews; and many loving and dear friends who became part of Peg’s extended family. Relatives and friends are invited to attend her visitation from 5 to 8 p.m. April 11, at First United Methodist Church of Bristol, located at 201 Mulberry Street, Bristol, PA 19007. A funeral service will begin at 8 p.m. at the church. Peg will be laid to rest privately at the request of the family. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to United Methodist Women and sent to First United Methodist Church Bristol. To post photos, share a memory, or send an online condolence, please visit the web site listed below. Molden Funeral Chapel & Cremation Service, Bristol www.moldenfuneralchapel.com

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niece
Lois N. Houser [1940 - 2020]

Lois N. Houser passed away Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, at Silver Lake Nursing Center in Bristol Township.
Born May 28, 1940 in Bristol Township, Lois was the daughter of the late Melvin and Maretta Houser. She graduated from the former Delhaas High School in 1958. She was a life member of the Bristol First United Methodist Church and a former member of the Bristol Seniors Organization and the Bristol Cultural and Historical Foundation.
She is survived by her sister, Carol Mitchener (Harold); a brother, Dr. M. Kenneth Houser (Donna); a nephew, Brian Houser; a niece, Michelle Perkey (Mike); a great-niece and two great-nephews; along with several cousins and an aunt, Charlotte Doan.
The family would like to thank the staff at Silver Lake Center for their excellent care of Lois.

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niece
Carol M. Mitchener, born March 23, 1939 in Bristol Township to the late Melvin and Maretta Houser, passed away on Monday, October 5, 2020. 

She was 81. She attended Bristol Township Schools and in her senior year at Delhaas High School in 1956, was the class Valedictorian. Carol played clarinet in the high school band, then attended Kutztown University where she also played clarinet in the school's band and received her Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education. She went on to attend Boston University, where she also played clarinet in the school band and received her Masters Degree. Carol taught elementary education at Maple Shade School in Bristol Township and for 15 of her 35 years taught gifted education. 

 In 1964 she married Harold Mitchener. During the summers, they enjoyed travel and managed to see all 50 U.S. states and some foreign countries. They also entertained foreign teachers and foreign students in their home for 2 week periods. Carol was a charter member of the Bristol Cultural and Historical Foundation, where she was involved in many of the fundraising activities. She also wrote historical articles for the organizations' news letter. 

 Carol was a life member of the Bristol First United Methodist Church, where she and her husband worked with the youth group. She taught Sunday school to the youth and eventually to the adult class, she sang in the church choir and was the director of the hand bell choir. Carol also made crafts and baked goods for the church bazaar. At home, her sewing machine was used to sew many of her own clothes and gifts for others. For 14 years, she enjoyed her pet beagle, named Bingo, the name was selected after a song she taught the children in her classroom. After retirement, she and her husband spent 23 years working parts of 2 days each week in the Margaret R. Grundy Library History office. She was also part of a group of 3 that taught Bristol and the Industrial Revolution to all 5th grade students in both St. Mark and Snyder-Girotti Schools. In 2000, she and her husband Harold wrote a history book entitled "Images of America - Bristol".  

Carol is survived by her husband, Harold Mitchener, brother, Dr. M. Kenneth Houser (Donna), sisters-in-law, Anne Haines and Elizabeth Keon (Richard), nephews, Brian Houser and Tom Haines (Kathy), nieces, Michelle Perkey (Michael), Kathy Haines (Roy), Donna Leduc (Michel), Sandy Gallant (Ron), and Carolyn Leonard (Steven). She is also survived by her aunt, Charlotte Doan, 3 Godsons, Joshua Palmer, Jeremy Rogers and Jon Rogers, special friends, Dan and Mary Palmer, LJ Rogers and Gene Williams along with cousins, and great-nieces and great-nephews. She was predeceased by her sister, Lois Houser, sister-in-law, Eliza Mitchener and brothers-in-law, Charles and Bill Haines.  

The family would like to thank Legacy Gardens for the superior care they provided for Carol.  

Due the current COVID-19 Pandemic, Funeral Services and Interment will be held privately under the direction of Wade Funeral Home, Bristol Borough. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her memory to The Bristol First United Methodist Church, 201 Mulberry Street, Bristol, PA 19007 or The Margaret R. Grundy Library for the history collection at 680 Radcliffe Street, Bristol, PA 19007.