Rear Admiral Charles Abraham Park, USCG (Retired), former Chief Operations Officer of the Coast Guard and veteran of the former Lighthouse Service, will receive this year's Lamme Engineering Award at Ohio State University on June 9. The award is made each year in recognition of outstanding engineering achievement. Admiral Park was born in New Lexington, Ohio, on November 30, 1882. He received his preliminary and high school education in New Lexington and then attended Ohio State University from which he was graduated with a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering in 1907.
During the next year he was employed as a draftsman by the Land Office in Wyoming. From 1908 to 1911 he worked for the War Department as a Civil Engineer and Supervisor of Construction, also in Wyoming.
Joining the Lighthouse Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, in 1911, he spent the next 13 years connected with the Eleventh Lighthouse District, in Detroit, Mich. During this time he served first as principal assistant to the Inspector of the district, and later as principal assistant to the Supervisor, having charge of all engineering work and assisting in general administration.
In 1924 he was appointed Superintendent in charge of the Eleventh Lighthouse District. Radio aids to navigation being one of his prime interests, he played a prominent part in the introduction of such features on the Great Lakes at this time. In 1933 he became Chief Engineer of the Lighthouse Service, and in 1936 was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Lighthouses. While serving in the latter position, he acted as principal assistant to the Commissioner of Lighthouses in the administration of the service.
When the Lighthouse Service was consolidated with the U.S. Coast Guard in 1939, he became the Principal Aids to Navigation Officer. His work in this capacity involved the coordination of all matters concerning operations, maintenance, extendsion, and improvement of the systems of navigational aids. He resigned this position on November, 1939, to accept a commission as a captain in the military branch of the Coast guard. Until July, 1942, when he became Chief Operations Officer, he served as head of the Aids to Navigation Division. He was promoted to rank of rear admiral, as Chief of the Operations Division, in May, 1943. Admiral Park retired April this year. He is a recipient of the Legion of Merit (1946).
Rear Admiral and Mrs. Park, the former Maud L have two sons, Lt. Charles A. Park, Jr., USNR, an aviator, and Lt. Robert L. Park, USCGR. They also have on daughter, Mrs. W.T. Deeks, of New York City, and a granddaughter, Nancy Deeks.
Rear Admiral Park is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Washington Society of Engineers, and Sigma Xi, honorary scientific society.