History
On June 28, 1916, Charles E. Worley Jr. was born in Bluff City, Sullivan County, Tennessee. The son of Charles E. Worley, Sr. and Lucy Worley, Treasurer Worley attended the public schools in Bluff City and then enrolled at Emory and Henry College in Emory, Virginia. After graduating from Emory and Henry College in 1938, he decided to pursue a law degree and enrolled in the University of Tennessee’s College of Law. In 1941 he graduated from the university and was admitted to the Tennessee and Federal Bar in the same year.
Like many young men during the 1940s, Treasurer Worley served as a soldier in World War II. He served in the United States Army Air Corps for 2 ½ years and was discharged as First Lieutenant. As time moved along, Treasurer Worley assumed the management of the family business after his father’s death. The family business was known as the Bluff City Mills and it manufactured flour, corn meal and feed. In 1942, Treasurer Worley married Elizabeth Hickerson of Manchester, Tennessee with two daughters, Betsy and Susan.
During the 1960s, Treasurer Worley became more involved in state politics. From 1965 to 1967, he served as the representative for Sullivan County in the 84th General Assembly in the state House of Representatives. In 1966, he was co-manager of the gubernatorial campaign for Buford Ellington. One year later in 1967, Worley was appointed as the State Treasurer of Tennessee and served in that position until 1971.
After serving as State Treasurer, Treasurer Worley returned to Bristol and continued to manage the family business, Bluff City Mills. In addition to managing the business he had a second marriage on June 7, 1971 in Mountain City to Ann Brown. Ann had two children from a previous marriage, Shelton Hillman, Jr. and Martha Ann Hillman Waggoner. After many years went by, Treasurer Worley sold the Bluff City Mills in 1989. In addition to his work, Treasurer Worley was involved in other organizations. During his time, he served as chairman for the Democratic Executive Committee in Sullivan County and as a member for the State Democratic Committee. He was also a member of the Lions Club, the Elks Club, American Legion, Moose, Forty and Eight Club, Blue Key, and the Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity. On April 24, 2000, Charles died in Bristol, Tennessee. He was buried in the Morning View Cemetery in his hometown of Bluff City.
Reference: “Charles E. Worley, Jr.” Ancestry.com; “Charles E. Worley, Jr.,” Find A Grave http://www.findagrave.com; “Charles E. Worley, Jr. Obituary,” Bristol Herald Courier, 25 April 2000; Biographical Directory of the Tennessee General Assembly, Vol. V, 1961-1971 (Nashville: The Tennessee Historical Commission, 1990); Tennessee Blue Book, 1967.