In Memoriam - Paul G. Churchill
Paul Gabriel Churchill was born in Washington on July 31, 1945 and raised in Allanwood and Riverdale, where he graduated from Riverdale High School in 1963. He went on to earn a bachelor's degree in Latin from the University of Maryland, with minors in Greek and history. In 1985, he earned a master's degree from what is now Towson University.
​
Churchill was commissioned an officer in the Air Force in 1967 and served as a transportation officer with the Military Air Command and the Strategic Air Command, also completing a tour of duty in Vietnam before being discharged with the rank of captain in 1972.
​
In 1972, Churchill began teaching at Longfellow Elementary School, before moving in 1980 to Centennial High School, where he taught Latin and French. After he retired from Centennial in 1996, Churchill became an adjunct professor at Hood College in Frederick, where he taught Latin for several years.
​
In 1988, he was a co-founder of Watson's Tin Box in nearby Ellicott City. A talented cartoonist, Churchill also illustrated several Sherlock Holmes books. Churchill scoured antique shops and cruised eBay in search of Victorian antiques and objects d'arte. He used the pieces to convert the living room of his Eldersburg home into a replica of 221B Baker Street, as well as creating evidence boxes of “artifacts” for all 60 stories of the Canon. Churchill passed away at age 63 on November 10, 2006 due to complications from prostate cancer.
The Paul Churchill Fund
The Paul Churchill Fund has been established to allow area Sherlockians with financial hardships to attend local Sherlockian meetings. This fund is to benefit attendees of the Six Napoleons, Sherlockians of Baltimore and Watson’s Tin Box. To request assistance from the Churchill Fund, send an email to PaulChurchillFund@gmail.com. The fund manager will review the request and, if it's approved, will forward a paid RSVP to the Gasogene and notify the Sherlockian making the request that the RSVP was made. Complete anonymity and discretion are guaranteed.
We are currently accepting donations toward the Churchill Fund. If you are interested in helping, you can make your gift via PayPal (using the Friends & Family option, please!) to PaulChurchillFund@gmail.com. Currently, PayPal is the only option, but we are investigating other methods, as well.