THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 11, 1995 TAG: 9510100106
SECTION: ISLE OF WIGHT CITIZEN PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Around Town
SOURCE: Linda McNatt
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
I spent some time with an old friend the other day, a man I never really met - and he's gone now.
But I always felt like I knew Charles Henry Gray. Until his death in 1986 at 67, he was such a vibrant part of this community.
Gray, or at least a display remembering his life in Isle of Wight County, is on display at the Isle of Wight County Museum. He's one of the ``Illustrious Citizens'' the museum has been recognizing.
In fact, he's the third.
First, there was Roy Conklin, a man who lived in the area from 1869 to 1938 and invented the Conklin fountain pen. Then, there was Lillian ``Nanny'' Crocker, who died in 1993. She was remembered as a good neighbor, good friend, hard worker, a wonderful mother and grandmother.
If you're a native of the area, you probably either knew Gray or knew about him. He started working at the local packing plant on the loading dock when he was 20. At the time of his death, he was executive assistant to the chairman of the board of Smithfield Packing.
``He was just such a nice man,'' said one woman who worked with him.
That sentiment has been echoed often. If he ever intentionally hurt a soul, I haven't heard about it.
The display at the museum includes a coat he wore at work and a hardhat with his name on it. His ham carving knife is there and memorabilia from his longtime association with the Elks Lodge.
There's a picture of Gray on a golf course in Williamsburg with Johnny Unitas, Willie Mays, Joe Dimaggio and Gordie Howe. And there's a snapshot of one of Gray's well-known catering jobs, with tray upon tray of food.
Gray was a virtual whiz in the kitchen. His expertise at barbecuing hogs was unsurpassed. And if you've never tasted the Charles Henry Gray ham, still available on special order at the packing plant, put it on your list of things to do.
``Now I know what the expression `I feel like I've died and gone to heaven.' means,'' I remember one of our staff members saying the first time he tasted the treat.
The smoked ham is glazed with brown sugar and a combination of spices. The recipe is in the head of one woman with whom Gray entrusted it. And I hear it's also in the packing plant vault.
While at the museum, you can also pick up a couple of Gray's recipes, copies from a special supplement to The Virginian-Pilot that ran in 1979. There's a Smithfield Ham Sausage and Back Fin Crab Meat appetizer, meant to be served on crackers, and a Smithfield Ham Sausage Sandwich.
Gray was a member of Main Street Baptist Church. The church still oversees a scholarship given out in his honor each year. He was listed in ``Who's Who Among Black Americans'' in 1985. He served on the Smithfield Town Council during the last two years of his life.
``He is a company man, management now, but he seems to know most of the nearly 2,000 workers by name,'' said an article about Gray in ``Commonwealth'' magazine written in 1981. ``He knows Smithfield, and Smithfield knows him simply as `Charles Henry.' ''
The really nice thing about the museum display on Gray, and others like him, is that it gives newcomers to the county - and there are so many of them - a chance to meet the kind of people who made the area what it is today.
I never knew Nanny Crocker either, but just from what I've heard about her, I know I would have enjoyed knowing her. And can you imagine somebody from this part of rural Virginia inventing a fountain pen that is still remembered today?
What a nice idea this ``Illustrious Citizens - Treasures of Isle of Wight'' is.
Got an idea? Nomination forms are available at the museum. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by LINDA McNATT
Pat Hall, curator, at the display dedicated to Charles Henry Gray.
by CNB