Morris Alton Watson

Morris Watson was born in Wave, Arkansas on January 26th, 2022. Around about 1934 his family, including his father Jewell, mother Lily, brother Alfred and two sisters, Katie and Gertrude, moved just down the road a piece to Carthage. Arkansas where he spent the rest of his childhood years. He attended school at a tiny on room school house in Tulip, Arkansas where his highest grade completed was the 8th grade. Morris left school in 1938 to find work in the woods as a faller.
Morris met his wife to be, Evelyn Green, at a 4H meeting when he was just 14 years old. They would fall in love and court for several years.
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, Morris felt the call of patriotism and enlisted in the Army in March of 1942. Before he would leave for basic training, Morris and Evelyn were married by a Justice of the Peace in Tulip on July 25th 1942. After his basic training, Morris was stationed in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands where he would serve until his honorable discharge in December of 1945.
After being discharged from the Army, Morris and Evelyn followed Morris’s sister to Washington to find work and moved to Wenatchee in 1947 where they worked in the orchards and canneries. Three years later, in 1950, Morris and Evelyn decided to leave Wenatchee and head for California where Morris planned to study diesel mechanics on the GI Bill. While passing through Longview, Washington, Morris heard of work to be had at an aluminum plant that had recently opened up. He found a job with the Reynolds Metals Company reduction plant. He worked several different jobs there but eventually ended up in the cast house as casting machine operator. While the work was intended to be temporary, Morris stayed on at Reynolds for the next 33 years and retired from Reynolds in May of 1983.
In their retirement years, Morris enjoyed hunting, fishing and lots and lots of square dancing with his wife Evelyn. Morris and Evelyn loved camping and joined Thousand Trails camping club in 1976 and with their trailer in tow, traveled from coast to coast. They traveled until Evelyn would succumb to the effects of Alzheimer’s and could no longer be his navigator. Sadly, Evelyn passed away in January of 2005.
Morris and Evelyn raised 3 boys that survive him, Donald M Watson of Tacoma, J Patrick Watson of Bremerton and D Randy Watson of Ridgefield. Morris now has 4 surviving grandchildren; Jesse, Christopher, Keith and Kevin, and 3 surviving great grandchild; Isla, Seth, and Walker.
Morris and Evelyn were long time members of the Longview Methodist Church and the Merry Mavericks and R Square D square dance clubs.
Morris Passed away peacefully on the morning of Wednesday, May 18, 2022. He was 100 years old. He is preceded in death by his wife Evelyn, brother Alfred and sisters Katie Catton and Gertrude Crowder.
We are deeply grateful to his network of friends, the caring staff at the Canterbury Inn Assisted Living and the Peace Health Hospice team.
A graveside service will be held on Monday, June 13th, 2022 at 11:00am at Longview Memorial Park with a celebration of life service immediately following at Steele Chapel with Pastor Allison Mattocks officiating with a reception to follow. The service will be livestreamed and recorded online at https://youtu.be/iBHXgfZhSM0
Memorial contributions can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at https://www.alz.org