Charles Blanchard Phelps III

He was born on June 5, 1931, in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, the son of Charles B. Phelps, Jr., and Constance Lay Phelps. He attended The Hill School in Pottstown, PA, and earned a BA in Art History from Williams College in Williamstown, MA.

Charles served in the U.S. Army, managed a ski hill, opened the Royal Purple Cleaners, and served as a small town constable in Western Massachusetts. He worked as an architectural photographer for the Smithsonian and then turned to teaching with a fervor unmatched in his previous pursuits. Charles taught English at Danbury High School for thirty five years and continued to tutor students into his retirement.

Charles loved trains, ferries, travel, weather, and the outdoors. He was an avid reader of newspapers and fiction, often staying up late into the night reading about the places he’d visited or that interested him.. Charles took great pleasure in visiting his beloved the Clark Art Institute, listening to classical music on the lawn at Tanglewood with his wife, Kristin, and hearing fiddle tunes in a Cape Breton community hall. Charles delighted in a good story, both the plot and craft of its delivery.

Charles was a devoted son, and beloved brother to Nicholas Barclay Phelps, who he buried August 8, 2023.

Charles is survived by his wife, Kristin Nord Phelps of New Fairfield, CT; son, Wesley Charles Phelps, of Baddeck, Nova Scotia, and New Fairfield; and son, Matthew Nord Phelps (Veronica MacIsaac), of Halifax, Canada; and his three grandchildren.

Funeral services will be at Saint Andrew Church, 1 N. Main St., Kent, at 11:00 a.m. on August 18, 2023. Burial with military honors will follow in the church memorial garden, The Close. A reception to follow in the church hall.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to Saint Andrews, 1 N. Main St., Kent, CT 06757.