Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1922-04-04
DEATH CALLS C. L. ROBINSON
TO REST AFTER LONG ILLNESS.

Prominent Winchester Business Man
and Builder Of First Cold Storage
Plant Passes Away Calmly, After
Much Suffering. Many From A
Distance Coming For Funeral Rites
Tuesday Afternoon. News of Death
Occasions Much Sympathy and Re-
greet Among People Generally.
(From Winchester Star Of April 81
Death came quietly and calmly
late Saturday night to Charles l..
Robinson, prominent Winchester
business man, after weeks of suffer-
ing, at his residence, No. lib North
Market street, in the sixty-eighth
year of his age.
The condition of Mr.. Robinson,
who had been long troubled with a
complication of diseases, had been
growing worse gradually ever since
he returned early in February from
Johns Hopkins Hospital, of Balti-
more, where he underwent special
course of treatment during the
month of January, and for more than
two weeks he appeared to be sinking
to the end of his life's journey.
The patient suffered greatly dur
ing his last illness, but he is said to
have borne his affection with a
courage and fortitude that somewhat
amazed his physicians and family.
Toward the end, however, his suffer
ings diminished, and at 10 minutes
after IL o'clock Saturday night he
passed away as peacefully as one
lying down to quiet rest and sleep.
Funeral Services Tuesday Afternoon.
Arrangements for the funeral of
Mr.. Robinson were completed this
morning, and it was announced that
the obsequies would take place at 8
o'clock on Tuesday afternoon from
Market Street Methodist Episcopal
Church.
The service will be in charge of a
former pastor, the Rev. H. G.
Spencer, of Piedmont, w. Va, a
warm, personal friend of the de-
ceased, and he will be assisted by the
present pastor, the Rev. Walter Mark
Depp.
Winchester Hiram Lodge, No. 81,
Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons
will escort the body to Mount Hebron
Cemetery and conduct the interment
with Masonic rites and ceremonies
Inasmuch as the family of Mr.. Rob.
inson plans the erection of a large
mausoleum in the cemetery at an
early date, the body will be placed
temporarily in the Rouss mausoleum
Permission to do this was very kind.
ly granted by Peter Winchester
Rouss, of New York, son of the late
Charles Broadway Rouss, for whom
the mausoleum was erected many
years ago.
The active palbearers will be mem.
bers of Winchester Commandery
No. IL, Knights Templar, as follows
A. H. Jackson, George R. Theis, A.
R. Breckenridge, w. E. Cooper, l.
N. Good, H. B. McCormac, A. c.
Slonaker and C. w. Trenary.
The honorary pallbearers will be
Hunter N. Kern, Harry R. Kern
Shirley Carter, R. Gray Williams,
William G. Hardy, John H. Seal, Sr.
John w. Rosenberger, William R.
Hillyard, John S. Solenberger, J. L.
Maphis, Sr.; M. L. Capper, L. E.
Calvert, Stewart Bell, James B. Rus
sell and DIR. E. c. Stuart, all of Win
chester, and E. E. Cooke and Col
George B. Goetz, of Charles Town.
A party of between 40 and so old
time friends and business associates
of Mr.. Robinson is leaving Fairmont
w. Va, today in special Pullman
car attached to a Baltimore and Ohio
train, and they are expected to reach
Winchester about noon tomorrow for
, the funeral. 1t was expected also
that many of his friends from
! Charles Town and jefferson county
y Va, would be here for the obse-
quies.
veal Pioneer In Cold Storage
Business.
Mr.. Robinson was a native of Fort
lie, Ind, having been born there on
New Years day, January 1, 1855
Re was the son Of the late Francis H.
and Rebecca Jane Robinson His
early life, however, was spent at
Parkersburg and Fairmont, W. Va,
and it was at the latter place that he
began business career that gradual
ly developed and broadened into
wider fields, until at the time of his
death he had large interests in sew
ieral states.
Mr.. Robinson was engaged in the
ice and coal business in Fairmont
when friend, national bank ex-
aminer, drew his attention to the eff
forts being made by farmers and
others of Frederick county to devel-
OPP the commercial apple industry
here, and suggested that it probably
would be worth considering.
After several trips here, Mr.. Rob-
inson bought the old ice plant of W.
H. Palmer, on North Market street,
in 1901. The outfit, then operating
on a small scale, with no more than
20 tons capacity daily, was virtually
rebuilt by Mr.. Robinson in 1902 He
also erected in 1905 the first apple
cold storage plant in this section,
and, forming the C. l.. Robinson Ice
and Cold Storage Corporation, built
large additions as the business in
creased. He built an ice and cold
storage plant in 1908 at Charles
Town, w. Va, and in 1917 acquired
the plant Of the Berryvilie Ice and
Refrigerating Company at Berry
vile, Va. Today the capacity of
the corporations plants is 100 tons
of ice daily and space for the storing
of 100000 barrels of apples.
Other Large Business Interests.
Mr.. Robinson purchased the Win
chester Steam Laundry from William
Sumption in the fall of 1907, bought
the old Kent Street Presbyterian
Church, and after many alterations,
established the business in that his
toric structure.
The noted old Snapp Foundry, es-
tablished in 1866 by F. R. Snapp,
was purchased from A. R. Snapp and
Mrs. BERTHE Eddy in 1910, and it,
too, has prospered greatly under Mr..
Robinson's ownership.
In addition to all these large inter-
ests, he owned two apple orchards of
$50 acres in jefferson county, w.
Va, and was president and general