Charles Finch Barber, former chairman of ASARCO, Rhodes Scholar, and past director of the New York Stock Exchange, died peacefully at home in Greenwich, CT on September 30, 2012 at the age of 95. He was born February 26, 1917 in Chicago, Illinois and graduated from Northwestern University, Harvard Law School, and Oxford University.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy for five years. He served as Navy Secretary to the Joint War Plans Committee in Washington DC. Later, he was Aide and Flag Secretary to Admiral R. A. Spruance, Commander of the Fifth Fleet in the Pacific.
After the war, as a lawyer with Covington and Burling, he helped represent Pakistan for the 1960 Indus Treaty with India. Then, he joined the staff of the Justice Department as Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States and argued cases in the U.S. Supreme Court.
His principal business career was in the mining and metals industry. As chairman of ASARCO, Inc., he expanded copper production and helped finance the Cuajone copper mine in Peru. He received the Copper Man of the Year Award and served as chairman of the American Mining Congress. He was a member of the Americas Society and the Council on Foreign Relations.
Most recently, he was public director for the New York Stock Exchange and chaired its Regulatory Advisory Committee. He was also director for several companies and mutual funds. For 2000, he was named Fund Trustee of the Year by Institutional Investor.
In 1947, while a Rhodes Scholar in Oxford, England, he married Lois Helen LaCroix. They enjoyed hiking and sailing together. She passed away three years ago after 62 years of marriage. They are survived by their four children, Brad Barber, Ann Barber, Robin Barber, and Elizabeth Siegler.
Services will be held on Friday, October 12th at 11 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Greenwich, CT. In lieu of flowers, please send donations in his name to the Boy Scouts of America Chicago Area Council, 1218 West Adams, Chicago, IL 60607, 312-421-8800.
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