Charles E. Cooley
Files
Dublin Core
Title
Charles E. Cooley
Subject
Cooley, Charles Edward (1917-1998)
Description
Portrait photograph of Charles Edward Cooley as a young man.
Charles was born in Amherst, Virginia, the son of Clarence Walter Cooley, a traveling salesman born in Warrenton, and Sadie (McGraw) Cooley, born in Amherst. He grew up mostly on W. King Street, Strasburg, and was one of five children.
He graduated from Emory and Henry College in Washington County, Virginia, and served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy during WWII.
In 1943, while still a Navy Officer, Charles married Marian Paige Stover. She was born in Strasburg, the daughter of Frank Carson and Mary Virginia (Funk) Stover. The couple raised three children together: Craig Stover Cooley, Cela Annette (Cooley) Watson, and Cynthia Paige (Cooley) Conine.
After the war, he continued his education with a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Richmond. He also did graduate level work at the University of Virginia and the University of Colorado School of Banking.
Charles worked as a teacher, coach and then Assistant Principal at Strasburg High School. After that, he and his family moved to Rockingham County where Charles was the Principal of Harrisonburg High School from 1949-1957.
From education, Charles moved to banking. He worked as an executive Vice President of the former Harrisonburg Loan and Thrift Corporation which later became part of Crestar Bank. During the late 1960s, he joined Rockingham National Bank as vice president, retiring in the early 1980s.
While in Harrisonburg, he was active in the community. He served two terms on the Harrisonburg School Board and was on the Harrisonburg Recreation Commission. He was a founder of the city’s United Way and its educational television station. He was also a member of the Northampton and Harrisonburg Education association and the Harrisonburg Rotary Club.
He moved back to Strasburg after he retired and lived on Crim Drive. Having taken up golf in the 1950’s, it was, perhaps, unsurprising, that he died of a sudden heart attack while on the third hole of the Bowling Green County Club in Front Royal. He was 81 years old.
Charles was born in Amherst, Virginia, the son of Clarence Walter Cooley, a traveling salesman born in Warrenton, and Sadie (McGraw) Cooley, born in Amherst. He grew up mostly on W. King Street, Strasburg, and was one of five children.
He graduated from Emory and Henry College in Washington County, Virginia, and served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy during WWII.
In 1943, while still a Navy Officer, Charles married Marian Paige Stover. She was born in Strasburg, the daughter of Frank Carson and Mary Virginia (Funk) Stover. The couple raised three children together: Craig Stover Cooley, Cela Annette (Cooley) Watson, and Cynthia Paige (Cooley) Conine.
After the war, he continued his education with a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Richmond. He also did graduate level work at the University of Virginia and the University of Colorado School of Banking.
Charles worked as a teacher, coach and then Assistant Principal at Strasburg High School. After that, he and his family moved to Rockingham County where Charles was the Principal of Harrisonburg High School from 1949-1957.
From education, Charles moved to banking. He worked as an executive Vice President of the former Harrisonburg Loan and Thrift Corporation which later became part of Crestar Bank. During the late 1960s, he joined Rockingham National Bank as vice president, retiring in the early 1980s.
While in Harrisonburg, he was active in the community. He served two terms on the Harrisonburg School Board and was on the Harrisonburg Recreation Commission. He was a founder of the city’s United Way and its educational television station. He was also a member of the Northampton and Harrisonburg Education association and the Harrisonburg Rotary Club.
He moved back to Strasburg after he retired and lived on Crim Drive. Having taken up golf in the 1950’s, it was, perhaps, unsurprising, that he died of a sudden heart attack while on the third hole of the Bowling Green County Club in Front Royal. He was 81 years old.
Creator
Morrison Studio
Source
Morrison Studio Collection - Shenandoah County Historical Society
Publisher
Shenandoah County Library
Date
Labelled "Aug 1943" on box of plates.
Contributor
Identified in 2007 by Graham Conner, who remembered that Charles Cooley attended the Methodist Church in Strasburg.
Additional biographical information was compiled from public sources.
The Richmond Times Dispatch newspaper published a detailed obituary for Charles Cooley on 8 July 1998 (page 14). Much of the information about his professional career has been extracted from that article.
Rights
IN COPYRIGHT - NON-COMMERCIAL USE PERMITTED
Relation
Charles E. Cooley appears in Morrison Studio Collection numbers 009780, 009781, 012470, 012485.
Identifier
012470
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Glass Negative
Collection
Citation
Morrison Studio, “Charles E. Cooley,” Shenandoah County Library Archives, accessed December 22, 2024, https://archives.countylib.org/items/show/41299.
Comments