Shortridge - Robert Wm.
ROBERT WILLIAM SHORTRIDGE ... a short biography by kbz (more to come later in regards to his shortwave radio days here in Montgomery County)
Bob Shortridge wasn't a boy to go out and get into trouble. Instead, he was in his room working diligently with his shortwave radio. Soon, we'll have his logs to go along with these pictures (waiting on hubs to scan 'em). So want to thank his daughter, Mary Jo for sending these pictures and the logs to present a great piece of Montgomery County history. The first is in Bob's room with his radio just set-up. The second is Bob (getting ready for W9OUX - July 14, 1939) taken by his brother John. The last is Bob up on the roof of his family home at 1419 W. Main, Crawfordsville, putting up the "skyhook" - antenna - his mother, Nell Swank Shortridge took this one. When Bob started graduate school at Ohio State (1943 Organic Chem) later that fall, the radio went by the wayside but Bob was quite proficent before then. At Wabash he was a Phi Beta Kappa honorary and at OSU both Phi Lambda Upsilon and Sigma Xi honorary fraternities. The last pic (findagrave.com) is Bob a bit older (but didn't change much:).
Bob's father (Levy Paris Shortridge) was a travelling salesman for Music stores and the family moved quite frequently, Bob having been born in Newport News (Warwick, Virginia) the first day of September 1918. Bob and his brother (John) and sisters (Marjorie and Mary) were mainly raised by his mother, Nell Swank (daughter of William Gray and Mary Jell Gale Swank) and the Swank grandparents in Crawfordville. William was a doctor but resigned that job for an unknown reason, he later practiced as a carpenter and school janitor. The family lived for several years at 1419 W. Main, Crawfordsville. Mother, Nell was a graduate of CHS and of the Indianapolis Conservatory of Music. Upon divorcing Levy because of little help for her family, she became a stenographer, retiring from Ben Hur Life, and supported the household.
Having lived to the ripe age of 94, he passed away 5 October 2012 in Kansas City, Missouri. Wish I'd have gotten to know him as I bet he could have told me lots of historical things regarding his time at CHS and Wabash College (graduate of 1938 class, chemistry major). He spent much of his working years at Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City, then on to the University of Missouri's Technical Information Center where he did science and engineering searches for the university's business and industry specialists retiring from there in 1983. (findagrave.com- obituary). He did more of this type research after retiring.
At Wabash, Bob was a band and orchestra member, playing his clarinet and continued playing in bands throughout his life. He sang in the choir of the Village Presbyterian Church and the Johnson County Chorus, sharing that love of music with Charlene (Harris), his wife of 65 years, singing in their church, Country Club Methodist (Kansas City, Missouri), choir for many years, as well. They enjoyed going to symphonies, and various musical events.
Bob also enjoyed collecting old cameras, beginning with a freeby "Kodak Anniversary box camera at age 12," to the up-to-date digital cameras. Four daughters came to bless he and Charlene's home (Mary Jo; Susan; Margot; and Martha.
Crawfordsville is proud of her son :) Thanks Bob for leading a good, clean life and going out into the world and creating a super living from C'ville to Missouri. -- written by kbz with thanks to Mary Jo