Charles Parker Vaughan was born in Portland, Maine, in 1867. He completed his schooling at Phillips Academy, Andover. He was a prominent businessman and civic leader in Philadelphia when he became a Trustee of Bucknell University in 1921. He was the chairman of the Bucknell Stadium Commission, and he presented the deed of the stadium to J. Warren Davis, vice-chairman of the Board of Trustees on October 18, 1924. He was a generous benefactor to the University. He served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1931, until his death in 1936, and he served as Acting President of Buckell University for six months in 1931 following the resignation of President Hunt, until the appointment of Homer Price Rainey as President.