A Young Charlie Was Forced To Take Care Of Himself & His Ill Mother
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Charlie’s mother recovered for a short time but got sick again in 1903. She was readmitted to the asylum, and Charlie had to fend for himself for several days. He had trouble sleeping and had to find his own food until his brother returned from a stint in the Navy.
Eight months later, Charlie’s mother was released from the mental institution. In 1905, her condition flared up again, and she would never recover. Charlie took care of his mother until her death in 1928. He later wrote about the experience: “There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother’s fate.”
