CHARLESTON – Benjamin Bird Moore died Tuesday, July 7, 2015, at the Charleston Manor. He was 93 years old.

Born October 19, 1921 in Charleston, Mo, he was the son of Benjamin Bird Moore Sr. and Faye Smith Moore. After graduating from Charleston High School, Benjamin attended the University of Missouri, where he earned a BS in Agriculture. After graduation, he enlisted in the US Army and completed Officer Candidate School, and later served with the 45th Infantry Division, 158th Field Artillery, C Battery. With the 158th, he went to France as an artillery forward observer. He received the Purple Heart for battlefield injuries sustained in January of 1945, during the Battle of Reipertswiller in the Ardennes-Alsace Campaign.

After recuperating in hospitals in France and Kansas, Benjamin returned to Charleston to work on his family's farm, and to serve in the US Army Reserves. He married Margaret Anthony Moore, on March 25, 1948 and they lived happily together for over sixty-one years until her passing on April 11, 2009. Shortly after their marriage, Benjamin received orders to return to active duty, and he and Margaret relocated to Ft. Bliss, TX where Benjamin served as a gunnery instructor training artillerymen for the Korean War.
After his tour of duty, he and Margaret returned to Charleston and the family farm. Benjamin continued to serve in the US Army Reserves and attained the rank of Major before retiring in 1966. Besides farming, Benjamin was an active member of the Mississippi County Historical Society and the Charleston Kiwanis for many years. He was a life-long member of the Charleston Methodist Church, and all knew him for his dedication to ringing the church bell on Sunday mornings for over half a century, and for his sharing the joys of bell ringing with untold numbers of children.

Benjamin is survived by his brother, Joseph Handy Moore of Charleston; Joseph's two children, Anne (Meyer) of St. Louis, MO, and John Pierceall Moore, of Cape Girardeau, MO; the four children of his sister, Faye Moore Ely, who predeceased Benjamin: Hunter Ely of Charleston, MO, Julia Ely of Shelburne VT, Jennifer Ely of Burlington, VT, and Susan Ely of Hyattsville, MD.; and four grand-nieces and three grand-nephews.

Visitation will be from 12:30 p.m. until the funeral hour at 1:30 p.m., Sunday, July 12, 2015, at the United Methodist Church in Charleston. The Rev. David Collum, pastor, will officiate.

Interment will follow in the Memorial Park Cemetery at Sikeston under the direction of the McMikle Funeral Home.

Pallbearers will be: Hunter Ely, John Moore, Sam Babb, Hunter Moore, William Bird III and John Goodin.

Memorials may be made to:
The Mississippi County Historical Society
P.O. Box 312
Charleston, MO 63834