Marie Teague Cranston, age 87, a former resident of Augusta, died at Chestnut Hill in Highlands, North, Carolina after a brief illness. Graveside services will be held at Summerville Cemetery in Augusta, Georgia on Saturday, February 3 at 10:00 a.m. Officiating clergy will be her son-in-law the Reverend Michael H. Cleckler from All Saints Episcopal Church in Homewood, Alabama. A celebration of her life will be held at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Cashiers, N.C. on May 26, at 11:00 a.m.
Mrs. Cranston is survived by her two daughters, Catherine Cranston Whitham (Wayne) of Richmond, Virginia, and Elizabeth Cranston Cleckler (Mike) of Birmingham, Alabama; four grandchildren, Ann Whitham Cundy (Steve), Craig Cranston Whitham,(Christina) Joseph Bryan Boudreaux (Kathleen), and James Scott Boudreaux, Jr., and four great grandchildren, John Harford Cundy (Ford), Eleanor Thomas Cundy, Jackson Teague Boudreaux (Jack), and Elizabeth Minann Boudreaux (Ella).
A lifelong resident of Augusta, she was born on May 23, 1930 to Newton Nesbitt and Claire Ellis Teague and was predeceased by her husband of nearly sixty years John Craig Cranston, who had maintained a branch of his engineering firm now Cranston Engineering, in Cashiers for over twenty five years. She graduated from Chatham Hall and spent two years at Mary Baldwin College before returning to Augusta to work as a lab assistant at the Medical College of GA and to marry Craig. While most of her married life was spent in Augusta, she and Craig had maintained a second residence Fiddlers Green in Cashiers for the past fifty years.
Mrs. Cranston was a member of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America and the Sand Hills Garden Club of Augusta, Ga. An accomplished gardener and cook, she was widely appreciated for her cheerful undertaking of many projects of varying scope and difficulty. In addition, she was a devoted grandmother, instilling in her four grandchildren a love of the outdoors and all growing things. She cared for ageing family members, countless family dogs, cemetery plots, back yard gardens, and Craig, with energy and good humor. Marie discovered her talents as a water colorist in the 1970's and painted local landscapes prolifically over the last twenty-five years.
The family will receive friends on Friday evening, February 2 from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. at the home of Tom and Lee Robertson, 947 Meigs Street, and also after the service in the parish house of the Church of the Good Shepherd 2230 Walton Way, Augusta, Georgia. The family thanks the Reverend Robert Fain for the use of church facilities. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made to Historic Augusta, Inc. or the Highlands Land Trust.