By: Mark Holtsberry
Charles Alvin Riley was born in Dennison, Texas May 14, 1891. The son of Dr. Charles W. and Eva May (Dix) Riley. Charles W. Riley was born in New York July 22 1851. Eva May was born in Van Wert, Ohio, May 27, 1873. She was the daughter of Dr. Peres Alvin and Sarah Elizabeth Dix.
The couple was married in 1890. A daughter, Sadie, was born in 1895. By 1900, the family had moved to Cecil, Ohio from Texas. Little Charles was the only living child as their daughter, Sadie died February 4, 1899 and is buried in Live Oak Cemetery, Paulding.
On October 30, 1900, while visiting a patient in Cecil, Dr. Charles W. Riley was thrown from his buggy and hit his head, causing a concussion on the brain and never regained consciousness. He is buried with his daughter at Live Oak Cemetery. On October 13, 1906, Dr. Peres Alvin Dix passed away in Toledo, Ohio and is buried in Woodland Union Cemetery, Van Wert, Ohio.
Little Charles moved to Paulding and live at 106 Water Street. By 1910, Charles mother Eva, remarried a guy named Willis Deal, and lived on Water Street in Paulding. Willis was a real estate salesman.
By 1917, Charles joined the military and was stationed at Ft. Harrison, Indiana. On August 15, 1917, Charles was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant. He was in charge of 2nd Truck Company, 308th Mechanical Supply Train and served with this unit until January 12, 1918.
Charles was promoted to 1st Lieutenant January 14, 1918, and then promoted to Captain on October 17, 1918 and in charge of Company B. 308th Supply Train to October 30, 1918. He was then placed with 2nd Department Motor Transportation Department until June 28, 1919. He served at Camp Sherman, Ohio and Camp Mills, New York.
After military life, Charles seemed to go out of sight. By 1920 he had moved to Oakland, California. On March 4, 1924, Charles grandmother, Sarah Elizabeth Dix passed away and is buried beside her husband Dr. Peres Dix in Van Wert.
On February 1, 1926, Willis Deal passed away in Michigan. By 1930 after Eva’s husband Willis Deal died, she remarried again. William C. Timmis became her third husband.
On April 7, 1932, Charles Alvin Riley passed away from an accidental death in Oakland, California. His body was cremated and sent to Lagrange, Indiana to his mother, Eva. She brought the ashes back to Paulding, where services were held at the Crowell Funeral Home on Tuesday September 27, 1932. His remains were buried with his father and sister at Live Oak Cemetery. In May 1945, Eva passed away in Lagrange, Indiana. Her body was brought back to be buried with her husband and children in Live Oak Cemetery in Lot 14.
…Until Next Time!
