Charles Watts

Funeral services for Charlie Watts 87-year-old Buffalo resident who passed away January 19, will be held later this summer at the First Christian Church at 700 South 6^th Street in Springfield, Illinois. The date and time of the services will be posted this summer. Interment will be in the Rochester Township Cemetery in Rochester, Illinois, following the services. Donations in Charlie’s memory may be made to the Jim Gatchell Museum at 100 Fort Street in Buffalo, Wyoming 82834. Online condolences may be made at www.harnessfuneralhome.com.

Charles Allen Watts was born in Brookfield, Missouri in 1936. He graduated from Brookfield High School and attended Culver Stockton College and the University of Missouri-Rolla, earning a degree in Electrical Engineering.  After graduating, he worked for GTE and TWA.  He had two children, Larry Thomas Watts and Karen Lynn Watts, with his first wife Glenda Bishop; they later divorced. The family moved to Lamar, Missouri where he worked for Finley Engineering Company. In the early 70s, they relocated to Springfield, Illinois where he founded Communications Engineering Company. He married Patricia Peele in 1989. In 2022, he relocated to Buffalo, Wyoming to be near his daughter.

Charlie worked three jobs to put himself through college; he had an exceptional work ethic.  He obtained a private pilot’s license and enjoyed bouncing his family down runways in a Cessna 172.  Later he purchased an experimental aircraft. He enjoyed traveling with his wife Pat, whom he cherished and cared for when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. They were active members of the First Christian Church of Springfield. Charlie kept everyone connected by the “Watts Line,” phoning his brother Wade, his nephew Scott, his niece Jennifer, his sister-in-law ‘Big’ Karen, and his daughter ‘Little’ Karen.  He is survived by his daughter Karen Blaney (Tim) and three grandchildren Emmett, Morgan, and Kaitrin.  He is also survived by Pat’s grandchildren, Logan, Kelly, and Selby; his brother Wade Watts (Dorothy); and several nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his parents, his son Larry, his wife Pat, and his brother David Watts.