Barbara H. Chatham

By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA -- JCK Online, May 1, 2008

Barbara H. Chatham, born Jan. 14, 1919, wife of the late Carroll Chatham of Chatham Created Gems, died Feb. 8. She was 89.

A San Francisco native, Barbara Chatham attended the University of California at Berkeley and was married to Carroll F. Chatham in 1940. Carroll Chatham was the first to grow created emeralds, and Barbara worked with him as his corresponding secretary until the day he died, July 4, 1983.

"Even though she had just turned 89, she was still as sharp as a tack and hard to hold down," says son Tom Chatham, president and chief executive officer of Chatham Created Gems, San Francisco. "I had to make an appointment with her to visit, just to make sure she wasn't busy or gone."

Barbara Chatham is survived by her two sons, John and Tom; daughter-in-law Diana; grandchildren Rodney, Christa, Keith, and Serena; six great-grandchildren; her sister, Nadine Schendel; three nieces, Barbara, Nadine, and Jackie; and one nephew, Bill.