A lovely tribute article has been written about the passing of 109 year old Dr Charles H. White August 17th, in Kansas City.
Galesburg, Illinois-born Charlie was the first ever doctor to specialize in anesthesiology in KC and:
'Talking to Charlie was like falling into a history book. He was born in 1905, during the first months of the William Howard Taft administration. Buffalo Bill Cody and Chief Geronimo were still alive; John F. Kennedy and Laurence Olivier were not yet born.'
Charlie had vivid recollections of everything from the original amusement park that was to inspire a young boy called Walt Disney, to removing people's tonsils with picture wire during the Great Depression. He was a friend of Edgar Snow, author of 'Red Star over China', and the two young men picked fruit together to get by, when their old car broke down on a trip to California. He was a WW2 US Army Air Force vet, and a sax player.
This will make you blink though:
'He later learned that his specialty had side benefits; Charlie confided to me that he rendered his kids unconscious for long drives across Kansas on their way to vacations in Colorado.'
It's a fascinating glimpse into US history, from the words of a man who lived it first hand. And only slowed down in the very last years of his life. Well worth reading.
Rest in Peace, Charlie White.
http://time.com/3148628/worlds-oldest-people-life-lessons/
Obituary and photo link: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/kansascity/obituary.aspx?n=charles-h-white&pid=172175361&fhid=14160
Galesburg, Illinois-born Charlie was the first ever doctor to specialize in anesthesiology in KC and:
'Talking to Charlie was like falling into a history book. He was born in 1905, during the first months of the William Howard Taft administration. Buffalo Bill Cody and Chief Geronimo were still alive; John F. Kennedy and Laurence Olivier were not yet born.'
Charlie had vivid recollections of everything from the original amusement park that was to inspire a young boy called Walt Disney, to removing people's tonsils with picture wire during the Great Depression. He was a friend of Edgar Snow, author of 'Red Star over China', and the two young men picked fruit together to get by, when their old car broke down on a trip to California. He was a WW2 US Army Air Force vet, and a sax player.
This will make you blink though:
'He later learned that his specialty had side benefits; Charlie confided to me that he rendered his kids unconscious for long drives across Kansas on their way to vacations in Colorado.'
It's a fascinating glimpse into US history, from the words of a man who lived it first hand. And only slowed down in the very last years of his life. Well worth reading.
Rest in Peace, Charlie White.
http://time.com/3148628/worlds-oldest-people-life-lessons/
Obituary and photo link: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/kansascity/obituary.aspx?n=charles-h-white&pid=172175361&fhid=14160
