Charles “Charlie” H. Ulrich

Obituary

Charles H. Ulrich, age 96, died at Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.

He was born 31 December 1930, the son of the late Reuben (Bob) L. Ulrich and Marie (Wise) Ulrich of Hutchinson, MN. Charles was raised on the family farm near Biscay, MN, attended the Biscay rural school, District #17, and was an honor graduate of the 1948 class of Hutchinson High School.

He attended the University of Minnesota for two years, then through competitive examination, earned an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland and entered the U.S. Navy on June 16, 1950. He graduated with credit on June 4, 1954 and was commissioned an Ensign, USN. He attended Graduate School at The Ohio State University earning a Masters' Degree in Geodetic Science. He also completed nuclear power training under Adm. H.G. Rickover and was assigned to the USS Enterprise testing and training facility (AlW) for extended duty prior to nuclear ship service. Charles served on active duty as a Surface Warfare Officer for over 27 years, retiring as a Captain, USN, on June 30, 1981.

Sea duty assignments included Chief Engineer, Operations Officer, Navigator and Executive Officer in destroyers as well as Chief Engineer of an attack aircraft carrier, the USS Oriskany, during combat operations. He was an engineering watch officer and Damage Control Assistant during the building, fitting out and testing of the world's first nuclear powered destroyer leader, the USS Bainbridge, and as its navigator during her first extended operational overseas deployment. As his experience increased, he commanded a convoy escort patrol craft, the USS Malvern, training sonar students, a guided missile destroyer, the USS Somers, during the Vietnam War, and a guided missile cruiser, the USS Leahy (CG16), or the “Sweet Sixteen”, during the Iran/Iraq War and Iranian Hostage Crisis. Earlier shipboard experience also included Korean coastal patrol during peace negotiations at the end of that war and activity around the Tachen Islands in the Taiwan Strait as the communists took over China. He also participated in an underwater atomic bomb test, Operation "Wigwam" in the Pacific. He made two extended Indian Ocean cruises the second of which required entry of the cruiser he commanded into the Persian Gulf to provide the friendly gulf states anti-air protection during the aborted attempt to free the Iranian hostages. This was the first gulf entry of a major U.S. Warship since World War II. While there, Charles served as Flag Captain for the Commander of the mid-east force.

Other at sea assignments included surface operations officer and aircraft carrier scheduling officer on the staff of the seventh fleet striking force commander, (better known as Task Force 77) during the Vietnam War while in the Tonkin Gulf. Shore duty assignments included the senior member of the Pacific Fleet Propulsion Examining Board, Director of the Instrumentation Department of the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office, and as a member of the staff of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Atomic Energy with responsibility to prepare, coordinate and get approved by all the involved offices as well as the Secretary of Defense of the five year nuclear weapon stockpile paper for the President's signature.

He received many awards for performance of duty including the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star (3 awards), Meritorious Service, Joint Service and Navy Commendation Medals and Navy Achievement Medals, Combat Action Ribbon, Navy Unit Commendation (3 awards) and the Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal (First Class) and RVN Navy Distinguished Service Medal (Second Class) and other theater awards. His Vietnam Service Medal included five major engagement stars.

After Captain Ulrich retired from Naval service, he was employed as a field engineer by the General Electric Company in their Long Beach, California service engineering office. A family health situation required relocation to Maine where he accepted a position on the faculty of The Maine Maritime Academy located in Castine, Maine. He taught at that college for the next fourteen years, attaining the Academic rank of Professor and was elected to serve as Chairman of the nationally accredited (ABET) Engineering Department during his last four years as a faculty member. He was recalled to active Naval duty during the summer of 1985 to serve as Convoy Commodore during a readiness training exercise for the sixteen merchant ship ready reserve force deployed to their base at Diego Garcia in the southern Indian Ocean. Charles was a licensed Professional Engineer and also held a First Class Stationary Engineers License from the state of Maine. He held and sailed on a Chief Engineer's License (any horse power, any ocean) issued by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Charles was a life member and past master of Temple Lodge #59 AF&AM of Hutchinson. He was also a life member of Rising Star Lodge #4 of Penobscot, Maine and the San Diego, California Scottish Rite, as well as life membership in the Hutchinson DAV, Hutchinson American Legion Post #96 and VFW Post 106. He was a member of the Meeker County Navy Club and the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association.

He was a proud member of the Castine Town Band while living in Castine, Maine, and served several terms as band president. Many of his retirement hours were spent rehearsing and performing with that band, and also the Castine Brass Quintet of which he was a charter member. After returning to Hutchinson, he continued to enjoy music with the Mid’Minnesota Concert Band of Howard Lake, Minnesota, and as an alternate bugler and rifleman with the Hutchinson Memorial Rifle Squad. He was a regular volunteer greeter at the Hutchinson High School and had been honored to be named a Distinguished Graduate of that school in 2016. He was a life-long member of Bethlehem United Methodist Church although he had joined other congregations as an associate member where he had been stationed. He served as an usher in the First Presbyterian Church of San Diego, as a deacon and later as congregation moderator of the Trinitarian Congregational Parish, UCC, of Castine.

Charlie liked to hunt and fish, peaking with a successful elk hunt in the Wyoming Wind River Range with his brother Donn.

Charlie is survived by his
Wife, Carolyn (Bastey) Ulrich of Hutchinson, MN;
Daughter, Susan Grace of Stonington, ME;
Son, Robert (Bob) Warren and his wife, Alexandra (Allie) of Portland, ME;
A much-loved grandson, Matthew B. Patten of Bangor, ME;
Niece, Pamela Buckingham (William) of Chaska, MN;
Nephews, Thomas C. (Karlene) Ulrich of Hutchinson, MN,
Timothy B. Ulrich of Hutchinson, MN;
as well as many other family members and friends.

He was preceded in death by his Parents, Rueben and Marie Ulrich; his only sibling, Donn W. Ulrich and his wife, Anna; and Niece, Carol M. Haukos.