Charles Melvin Anson, 90, of Lincoln, died March 29, 2018, at the Tabitha Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Lincoln. He was born in Creston on July 20, 1927, to Edward Harris Anson and Bessie Mae (Wilber) Anson. He married Lois Irene Christensen on September 5, 1948, in Lincoln. He graduated from Fremont High School in 1944 and studied briefly at Midland College in Fremont before enlisting. He served as a fireman in the U.S. Navy until his honorable discharge in 1946.

He then graduated with a B.S. in Civil Engineering at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, in January of 1950. Charles worked a few years at the Bureau of Reclamation and then in 1952 moved to Western Laboratories in Lincoln, where he established its geotechnical division. He continued to manage the division after the company eventually merged into Hoskins-Western-Sonderegger, Inc. and until his retirement in 1995. Many of the major structures throughout Nebraska stand on foundations he designed.

Charles is survived by his wife, Lois; brother LeRoy (Isabell Longstreet) of Hastings; sister Charlotte (Ronald) McKenzie of Fremont; sons Edward (Gertruda Smeets) of Andover, Mass., Timothy of Gloucester, Mass., and Thomas (Linda Kranz) of Lincoln; sister-in-law Lila (Calvin) of Omaha; and grandchildren Britta of Seattle, Wash., Vicky of Nashua, N.H., and Erik of Seattle. He is preceded in death by his parents; sister Geraldine (Ronald) Elliott and brother Calvin (Lila).

A celebration of his life is being planned for later this year.

Originally published in the Lincoln Journal Star on April 11, 2018.