Charles Luther Best ’46

Charlie died June 21, 2004, in Easton, Pa.

A graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School, he entered Princeton in 1942 to study mechanical engineering. Enjoying rugby, baseball, and band, Charlie joined the Navy and continued college at Swarthmore, graduating in 1945 with a bachelor's in mechanical engineering. He earned a PhD at Virginia Polytechnic Institute with a dissertation on "An Integral Equation Approach to Vibrating Plates."

He first taught mathematics at Mohawk College in Hamilton, Ontario, then became an instructor in engineering at Lafayette College in Easton, leaving for two years to work for Johns Manville in Pennington, N.J.

In 1954 he became an associate professor at Lafayette, then became a full professor of mechanics and engineering in 1965, continuing in that capacity until his retirement in 1994. In the 1960-61 year he took a sabbatical leave in London with his family.

Charlie was married in 1954 to the late Margaret Backes and they had three sons, Charles Jr., Timothy, and William. To them, the class extends its sympathy on the loss of our eminent classmate.

The Class of 1946