Charles E. Woodworth
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Major Charles E. Woodworth, Ph.D., (1897–1966), served as a Major in the United States Army during WWII and as an Entomologist for the USDA Agricultural Research Service.
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[edit] Birth
He was born in Berkeley, California on September 25th, 1897. His father, Charles W. Woodworth, would become a Professor Emeritus of the University of California, Berkeley and is a noted figure in the history of Entomology; His mother was Leonora Stern.
[edit] Early life and education
Charles graduated with a BS and an MS from the University of California, Berkeley. He took a job as a teacher at Modesto Jr. College where he met and married the widow, Sarah Louise Nelson Vickers and adopted her son James Vickers Woodworth. While in Modesto, they had a daughter, Elizabeth Louise Woodworth who was born very premature, but survived. An Associated Press article about her survival detailed how she fit into a matchbox and raised national interest.
The young couple then moved to Wisconsin where Charles attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received a Ph.D. in Entomology.
[edit] Military service
During World War I, he entered the United States Army and was in training when the armistice was declared. In World War II, during a two year period in the South Pacific, he was commanding officer of the Army's 33rd Mosquito Control Unit. Their job was to find the breeding place of the mosquitoes and to teach the soldiers how to protect themselves. He received special citations and ended his service as a Major. His lungs were significantly damaged during this service. He had to hang upside down in numerous occasions for the rest of his life to drain them. This service injury also contributed to his somewhat early death of a respiratory aliment in 1966.
[edit] Entomology career
He had a long career with the USDA Agricultural Research Service. He was a leader of the Vegetable Insects Laboratory in the Blalock Tracks at College Place, Washington. His principal research was into the wireworm, although he worked on many other things during his long career. The fact that the wireworm lives underground makes them difficult to exterminate. Much of his work had to do with techniques to allow reasonable crop yield in the presence of wireworms. Thirty-one insect specimens that were collected by him are in the Essig Museum of Entomology at UCB.
[edit] Community service
He was listed in "Who's Who in the West" and "Who's Who in Washington". He was a charter member of the College Place Kiwanis Club and was its secretary for its first 15 years. He was also a member of the First Congregational Church of Walla Walla. The Mayor of College Place described him as "a supporter of community, cultural, and spiritual aims who always could be counted on."
