The Charles McFann Collection
I acquired the pictures in the group from a single source, and while I would like to put them in the other galleries by type, I was so compelled by my McFann's organizational interests and research, I decided to make their own spot. Charles McFann was an engineer, and as such had varying interest, among them photography and its restoration. I spent a lovely afternoon talking to one of his sons, Garret and his wife Julie-Ann. Garret is a sculptor!
Here is an excerpt from McFann's obituary:
"Charles was born on Feb. 8, 1926, in Mishawaka, Indiana to Iva (Jackman) and Charles B. McFann Sr. but spent most of his childhood in Southern California. He graduated from the University of Denver in June 1952 with a degree in mechanical engineering with honors. He began his engineering career in the Southern California aerospace industry before moving to Livermore in 1962, where he worked at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) for more than 20 years. After retirement from LLNL, he was a consultant for several companies in Silicon Valley.
Charles was a WWII veteran who enlisted in the Navy on his 17th birthday. He saw action in the South Pacific as a turret gunner in a torpedo bomber. He was on the same ship as one future president, Gerald Ford, and in the same task force as another, George H. W. Bush. He took part in the atomic bomb testing at Bikini Atoll.
He was an active member of the Livermore Art Association and the Livermore Heritage Guild. He singlehandedly renovated his historic home in Livermore and an old cottage on South K Street, plus restored old cars and photographs. He was instrumental in the restoration of the antique fire engines at the Duarte Garage and Lincoln Highway Museum in Livermore."