Abram Carrington Read Charlton Sr. ‘Read’

Published 9:05 am Wednesday, May 8, 2024

Abram Carrington Read Charlton Sr. “Read”, 88 of Charlotte County, died on April 29, in Farmville after a brief illness. Read was a longtime resident of Greenfield Plantation, which has been in his family since 1771. 

Born July 15, 1935 in Savannah, Georgia to Thomas Jackson Charlton IV and Anne Read Charlton, he split his time between Savannah and the Read family home, in Charlotte County. 

Read led an extraordinary life. After boarding school at St. Paul’s in New Hampshire, he graduated from Yale University in 1957 with a BA in Art History and a degree from the Yale School of Forestry. He served in the United States Marine Corps as well as the United States Army. He worked for the United States Government in Laos and also in Paris, France during the Paris Peace Talks held to negotiate an end to the war. He served as an analyst for the U.S. Army until his retirement in the 1990s. 

An avid outdoorsman, Read loved fishing and duck hunting, and particularly enjoyed trips to the Edisto River in South Carolina and Ocracoke Island in North Carolina. In Read’s latter years, he preferred to observe wildlife, of which there is no shortage at his home in Charlotte County. A passionate steward of the Greenfield estate, he put Greenfield under a conservatorship to help ensure it would not be developed after his passing. 

“To be sure, there was a time, right after Yale, when I crossed oceans and traveled in distant lands. But that time has passed, and, ultimately, I would rather be here [at Greenfield], walking the banks of Roanoke Creek,” he once said. 

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Ann Morris Charlton; his children, Abram Carrington Read Charlton Jr. “Judge” and Sarah Elizabeth Charlton Detrick; his son-in-law, Thomas Richard Detrick and grandchildren, Samuel Read Detrick and Carrington McClaran Detrick. He is also survived by his older brother, Thomas Jackson Charlton V, and many beloved nieces, nephews and close friends. 

He is preceded in death by his sister, Anne Charlton Anderson. 

A heartfelt thanks to Centra Southside Community Hospital for their exemplary care of Read during his hospital stay. The nurses and staff exceeded expectations to ensure Read and his family’s comfort. 

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Virginia Property Rights Alliance or the Southside SPCA. 

“I’d go to war for fresh cod,” -Read Charlton 

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m., Wednesday, May 15, at John’s Memorial Episcopal Church in Farmville, with graveside visitation to follow at Greenfield Plantation. 

Puckett Funeral Home is serving the family. www.puckettfh.com.