Charles S. Van Eaton

Charles S. Van Eaton (10 August 1889 – 13 February 1974) was an American politician and businessman.

Early life and career Charles S. Van Eaton was born to parents Matthew Simpson and Pearl Derry Van Eaton in Tacoma, Washington, on 10 August 1889. The Van Eaton family moved to Iowa by the time Charles was three years old, and he spent time in Iowa, as well as western Canada, as a child. Van Eaton earned degrees from Iowa Business College in Council Bluffs and Graceland College in Lamoni in 1908 and 1911, respectively.

Van Eaton acquired, owned and operated several business interests, among them a hardware store, furniture store, general store and funeral home in Pisgah, Iowa, and later opened an O. P. Skaggs franchise in Fremont, Nebraska, in 1928. During the 1946 election cycle, Van Eaton faced Harold F. Nelson and Fred E. Riddle in a Republican Party primary. In 1947, Van Eaton expressed support for an amendment to alcohol laws proposed by Waldo Fimmen. By August 1949, Van Eaton was considered a potential candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa. Throughout the 1950s, Van Eaton advocated for an toll road called the Iowa Turnpike to be built. A bill providing $300 million in funding for the construction of the road was passed. At the time, it was the most expensive bill to pass the Iowa Legislature.

Personal life and death In August 1955, Charles Van Eaton and his wife Laura Martin Van Eaton were granted a divorce in Dade County, Florida. Charles Van Eaton died on 13 February 1974 in a Sioux City hospital.