Charles N. Watson Jr. ’61

Chuck died Nov. 15, 2025, at home in Westbrook, Conn.  

He came to Princeton from Pelham High School. At Princeton, he was pre-med, majored in English, and ran cross-country. He briefly took his meals at Key and Seal, then joined friends Contee Seely and Bill Rough to “eat on the street.” From Princeton he went to Duke to earn a doctorate in American literature. He taught at Washington State before moving east to join the faculty of Syracuse University, where he taught for 35 years.  

Toward the end of his academic career, Chuck’s lifelong interest in the natural world and self-sufficiency moved him to buy an old farmhouse and surrounding land in Manlius, N.Y. There he planted a garden that fed himself and neighbors and often helped to stock a local food bank. In 2008, he and his life partner, Nance, moved to Connecticut to be closer to family. 

After years of birding on his own, he joined the Audubon Society and traveled to the Carolina lowcountry, Africa, and Down East Maine in the company of old friends in search of “new” birds. He edited Audubon and Audubon Eco-Travel publications for a decade.  

Chuck reveled in family life with the five children and eight grandchildren he and Nance shared. To all of them, the class offers its condolences.