William Polk Allen, Jr.

William Polk Allen, Jr. peacefully joined his beloved wife, Idalee, on Friday morning, October 30th. Bill was born on May 18,1925 in Murfreesboro and was the last surviving graduate of the last class of old Central High School, graduating the year before it burned. He enjoyed sports of all kinds. If it involved a ball, he enjoyed it. Murfreesboro was such a small town when he was a boy that he and his buddies, who all grew up to be Murfreesboro leaders, could ride their bicycles all over every square inch of town. The stories those adventures provided were highly entertaining and he was a legend at telling them.

On May 18,1943, Bill did three things. He turned 18 years old, graduated from high school, and registered for the draft, finding himself only a few short months later in the Navy headed to Europe on LST 523 as the United States was in the throes of World War II preparing for D-Day, the deadliest military conflict in its history. Allen, who at age 101, was one of the last U.S. veterans surviving the D-Day invasion of France at Normandy. He spent many of the final years of his remarkable life explaining why he didn’t consider himself a hero. “The men who died there were the real heroes,” he routinely told people who hailed his service as a Navy medic in June of 1944 when 4,000 Allied troops were killed by Germans defending the beaches of Normandy, France. As a teenager, he was assigned the grim task of cleaning and tagging the bodies of deceased soldiers to return home. He said he was simply a “survivor,” including when his ship was sunk by a German mine on June 19, 1944, while attempting to land at Omaha Beach. He was one of only 28 of the 145 personnel aboard who survived the blast.

Overwhelmed with gratitude for a series of so-called coincidences that had saved his life, he returned to the United States with a deeper Christian faith and sense of purpose, intent on making the most of his second chance in life. He began working and living at Woodfin Funeral Home for Mr. John B. Woodfin, even marrying Idalee in the chapel there in 1955. He returned to Woodfin’s after retirement and sprightly helped with a funeral on his 91st birthday. Woodfin’s was his second home, and the staff was his second family.

He worked for 32 years for the Murfreesboro Electric Department, where he was responsible for purchasing the poles, lines and other equipment needed to expand the power grid to support his growing community.

He was a charter member of the Exchange Club, maintaining friendships for decades with its members and supporting its mission.

A golf enthusiast, he was instrumental in establishing Old Fort Golf Course, the first city-owned public golf course in Murfreesboro in 1985, and he chaired the city’s golf commission for 30 years. He served for 20 years on the local Parks and Recreation Board and, as his daughters grew up, was active in their school PTA and band booster organizations. He coached Babe Ruth Little League baseball teams and was an enthusiastic supporter of athletics at Middle Tennessee State University.

In his final years, Allen was celebrated by most everyone he met. At the age of 89, he went to the bottom of the English Channel in a three man submarine to go through the remains of his LST 523 and be a part of a joint PBS/BBC documentary celebrating the 70th anniversary of D-Day. He led Veterans Day parades, was the grand marshal for the Murfreesboro Christmas parade, threw out a baseball at a Nashville Sounds ballgame on the 80th anniversary of D-Day, was honored at the Grand Old Opry for its 99th anniversary and enjoyed private audiences with various elected officials including Governor Lee. “He had to help the governor with a few issues”, he jokingly said. He was the subject of the 2021 book Death Duty, by Ben Cunningham, and numerous news articles.

Bill was a man of faith and purpose; a devoted husband, father, and family patriarch and a long-time deacon and usher at First Baptist Church, to which he gave much time and love. During his later years, he became a sought-after speaker about his wartime experiences, as well as the keeper of a treasure trove of stories about a century of history in his beloved hometown of Murfreesboro.

But to the many people who knew and loved him – his family, friends, co-workers and community in Murfreesboro, Tennessee – he was a hero and not just because of the seminal wartime event that helped to shape his lifetime of kindness, humility and community service. He cared most about three things, and in this order: God, family and community and he used his highest priority to serve the other two.

Allen is survived by two daughters, Patti Hutchinson (Glen) and Linda Allen; grandchildren Will (Robin) Hutchinson, Emily Hutchinson all of Murfreesboro, and Ashley (Curtis) Smith of St. Augustine, Florida; and great-grandchildren Van and Charlee Hutchinson; Jaxston and Heath Kipping; and Calloway, Chloe, and Griffin Smith. He was preceded in death by Idalee Tomlinson Allen, his wife of more than 70 years; his parents, William and Nora Harris Allen; a younger brother, Harris Allen; and grandson Kevin Kipping.

His funeral will be Tuesday, November 3 at noon, with visitation from 9:00 until noon both at Woodfin’s and internment following the service at Evergreen Cemetery. The service will be led by Reverend Paul Peak and Reverend Charles Nored. Mike Sams, Joey Collier, Doug Brown, Ben Duck, Dan McHugh, Will Hutchinson and Curtis Smith will serve as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers are Bruce Plummer, Charlie Thompson, Ricky Crosby, John McClure, Bobby Francis, Jim Fuller, David Peterson, Ronald Barrett, Tracey Wilkins, Marty McCurry, Joel Beckham, Mike Fitzhugh, Members of the Exchange Club and especially the staff of Woodfin Chapel.

The family extends special thanks to Karen Burke for her loyal, attentive, and caring service to Bill and his wife, Idalee, during their final years. Memorials can be made to the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center at MTSU, Portico or the charity of your heart.

An online guestbook for the Allen family is available at www.woodfinchapel.com.

                               “Time will not dim the glory of their deeds.”