Rice Family Stories

George and Betty's son, Charles (or Chuck as he was later called), helped his dad in the tire shop when he was young, and then joined the Air Force and served in the Korean War, which took him to Alaska where he served in the Aleutians doing radar work.  After his discharge, he became a test engineer and worked in the aerospace industry at Douglas and Rockwell International.  When Charlie was 28, he met Barbara Muckenthaler, 8 years his junior, on a blind date set up by his best buddy Ed Hothan, whose wife Marva worked with Barbara at State Farm Insurance. Chuck remembered while dating Barbara they would play scrabble in front of the Muckenthaler's fireplace and eat Baskin-Robbins ice cream that he had brought.

Charles, 29, and Barbara, 21, were married on November 23, 1957 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Santa Ana, California with Barbara's sister, Joan Muckenthaler serving as maid of honor, and Charlie's sister's boyfriend Kenny Arsenault as best man. (He was the only Catholic friend Chuck knew). It was the same church in which Barbara's grandparents and parents were married. The newlyweds first house was on Richard Place in Anaheim, California, where they lived when they had their first three children: Suzanne Marie born November 16, 1959; Michael William born April 25, 1961; and Jenifer Anne born March 25,1963. After moving to their second home at 1011 N. Towner in Santa Ana, California, they had their final child, Matthew Robert born September 11, 1966.

Chuck worked for Rockwell Internation in Anaheim, California until his retirement in 1988, when he and his wife bought an acre of land and moved to Mt. Shasta, California where they built a home at 718 Meadow Valley, next door to their daughter, Sue and her family. Their youngest son, Matt, also moved with them to Northern California. Chuck took pleasure in tending to his vegetable garden, and he and Barbara enjoyed taking trips in their trailer and visiting with their 3 granddaughters next door. Chuck also had a passion for genealogy and spent much of his spare time researching the family tree.

Unfortunately, his retirement was cut short when after just 2 years Chuck died suddenly the day after his 62nd birthday on July 8, 1990 from a pulmonary embolism (blood clot on the lung) at Redding Medical Center in Redding, California. A year later, his family was shocked again when Chuck's wife Barbara, 55, died suddenly at the emergency room of Mercy Medical Center, Mt. Shasta from coronary artery disease on Auguest 28, 1991 (her granddaughter Beth's 9th birthday). She and Chuck are both buried at Mt. Shasta Memorial Park, Mt. Shasta, Siskiyou County, California. 

Family Stories by Charles William Rice

My dad lived on a ranch in Mountain View during the quake of 1906. It was a fifteen acre ranch located on San Antonio Ave. The Hagues had a ranch across the way from the Rice ranch and their son was the Perry Askem who played the lead role in the Original Broadway play "The Desert Song". Askem was his mother's maiden name.

Charles William Rice (George Dewey Rice's father) went to a Military School which was located at Marysville, Ohio.

When my dad (George Rice) was ten the Rice family moved to Cuba, Missouri after Grandpa Charles W. Rice was in business with Charley Childs. They had a grocery store and real estate business. Later, Charley bought a farm west of Cuba and Charles W. bought one South East of Cuba. They lived in that area only about 2 years. My Dad was eleven years old when they moved away to Wisconsin where Charles W. went to work as a brakeman on the Wisconsin Central Railroad. He worked there about fifteen years.

6 Mar 1979

Daddy indicated that Jacob Childs (my dad's grandpa) ran away from home in England when he was young and joined a Whaler boat and never went back to England. This supposedly got from his mother and she want my dad (George Dewey), when he was overseas (England), to look up some Childs relatives. This doesn't check out with my finding at all, so I'm in the dark about this whole story. He (Jacob Childs) is supposed to be buried in Amherst in Wisconsin (Portage Co.) The Rice's (My dad's folks) were living in Missouri at the time of his death in Wisconsin and his mother (my Grandma Rice) went back to Wisconsin for the funeral.

            -Charles W. Rice

April 1989

Per Uncle Edward C. Rice Jacob Childs was born in Connecticut and as a young man went to sea with an uncle who was the Capt. of a whaling ship. Jacob Childs is buried in Amherst, Wisc.

            -Charles W. Rice

My dad and his mother visited some Harmon's at Lannon Wisc. They owned a Rock Quarry where they cut large blocks of stone which were used in those days to build large buildings. They would cut these large blocks and load them on flat cars which came in the quarry on a spur truck. Albert Lawton worked for the Harmon's on their farm. This farm was located right behind "PABST" Brewery's house farm.

Albert and Edwin Lawton were Aunt Lucy's boys. When she died Aunt Ellen took care of them. Edwin had a newspaper in Isanti, Minn.

Lannon Wisc. is just west of Milwaukee.

My dad remembers that when his mother's father died that she went to Stevens Point, Wisc. for the funeral. She took along Edward (son). They were living in Cuba Mo. at the time. My dad said he can remember he shot some wild rabbits for her return to Cuba mo. (Jacob Childs-her dad- died Oct. 16, 1910, 93 years of age).

Grandma Rice and her first husband had a farm at Maple Hill, Kansas (Durea Warren). They lived in New York City (On 5th Ave).

Grandpa Charles W. Rice had the first theater in Marshfield, Wisc. named "UNIQUE". My father (George Dewey) played the violin, Aunt Florence played the piano and Aunt Ruth sang at the theater. This theater did fine until someone else built a real fancy one and took most of their business. They bought the "IDEAL" theater in Stevens Point Wisc. later. They also had one in Park Falls, Wisc.

Grandpa Charles William Rice was named after Charles Coates, his uncle.