Chief J. T. Alley, Jr. was as true a citizen of Lubbock as ever there was. Born here on June 26, 1923, he grew up in the Overton neighborhood, a scrappy and mischievous kid who left Lubbock High School early to enlist in the Marine Corps. During his tour of duty he served as an MP, discovering the work that would become his life; discharged from military service on September 4, 1946, he became a patrolman on his hometown police force that same day. Lubbock was then a small city policed by a correspondingly small force of officers who walked their beats - at the time they had a fleet of only two squad cars - relying on call boxes instead of two-way radios. The city grew in the nation's post-war prosperity boom, and J. T.'s career blossomed with it. He was promoted to sergeant in a year, elevated to captain before he had earned his five-year service pin, and named Deputy Chief in early 1953. On November 14, 1957, he was appointed Chief of Police, the position that he held until his retirement on January 31, 1983, making his tenure the longest in city history and one of the longest in Texas. J. T. enjoyed an equally long retirement of travel, bowling, and time spent with his family. He bowled his last game in late February, two nights before the onset of the brief illness that took him on April 27; two months before of his 86 birthday.
Chief Alley led the men and women of the Lubbock Police Department with a steady hand and a firm, quiet demeanor. His strength came from his devotion to his officers and his city, but his power came from the fairness with which he treated them all. He will be most quickly remembered for guiding Lubbock through the turbulent 1960s and the great tornado of 1970. But those closest to him will remember that he was most proud of the things that he created and fostered. He was an innovator in policing, starting the department's first juvenile division, its first K-9 Corps and SWAT teams, and the Texas Police Chiefs' Association. And in a very difficult time and place, he led the department's integration, not simply in hiring but by personally ensuring that officers of all races and cultures were treated equally in assignments and promotions. Though he never took a college degree, he encouraged his officers in theirs, and was forever proud of his own graduations from the FBI Academy and the Northwestern Traffic Institute.
He was equally proud of family. He married Dorris Reed in 1944 and the pair had five daughters. In 1976, he married Wanda Bullock, and is survived by her and by his four daughters, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren, in the families of Mary Ann and Andy Wilkinson and their son Ian Wilkinson and daughter Emily Arellano; Patricia Alley; Billie McMinn and her daughters Kristen McMinn, Marnie McMinn, and son Alex McMinn; and Tori and Brian Harrison and their daughters Jayme Wilson, Jennifer Mitchell, and son Matt Harrison.
Chief Alley was preceded in death by his parents, Edna and J. T. Alley, Sr.; three sisters, Grace Carter, Wanda Chapman, and Mary Atchinson; two brothers, Clayton Warren and Ted Alley; a daughter, Ann Marie Alley; a son-in-law, Bob McMinn; and his first wife, Dorris Reed Alley.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, May 1, 2009 at St. Luke's United Methodist Church (45th and Memphis) in Lubbock. Burial will follow in Resthaven Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be members of the Lubbock Police Department. Visitation will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 30, 2009 in the Abbey Chapel at Resthaven Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to a favored charity.
Please join us in celebrating J.T.'s life by visiting his memorial at www.mem.com.
Chief Alley led the men and women of the Lubbock Police Department with a steady hand and a firm, quiet demeanor. His strength came from his devotion to his officers and his city, but his power came from the fairness with which he treated them all. He will be most quickly remembered for guiding Lubbock through the turbulent 1960s and the great tornado of 1970. But those closest to him will remember that he was most proud of the things that he created and fostered. He was an innovator in policing, starting the department's first juvenile division, its first K-9 Corps and SWAT teams, and the Texas Police Chiefs' Association. And in a very difficult time and place, he led the department's integration, not simply in hiring but by personally ensuring that officers of all races and cultures were treated equally in assignments and promotions. Though he never took a college degree, he encouraged his officers in theirs, and was forever proud of his own graduations from the FBI Academy and the Northwestern Traffic Institute.
He was equally proud of family. He married Dorris Reed in 1944 and the pair had five daughters. In 1976, he married Wanda Bullock, and is survived by her and by his four daughters, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren, in the families of Mary Ann and Andy Wilkinson and their son Ian Wilkinson and daughter Emily Arellano; Patricia Alley; Billie McMinn and her daughters Kristen McMinn, Marnie McMinn, and son Alex McMinn; and Tori and Brian Harrison and their daughters Jayme Wilson, Jennifer Mitchell, and son Matt Harrison.
Chief Alley was preceded in death by his parents, Edna and J. T. Alley, Sr.; three sisters, Grace Carter, Wanda Chapman, and Mary Atchinson; two brothers, Clayton Warren and Ted Alley; a daughter, Ann Marie Alley; a son-in-law, Bob McMinn; and his first wife, Dorris Reed Alley.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, May 1, 2009 at St. Luke's United Methodist Church (45th and Memphis) in Lubbock. Burial will follow in Resthaven Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be members of the Lubbock Police Department. Visitation will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 30, 2009 in the Abbey Chapel at Resthaven Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to a favored charity.
Please join us in celebrating J.T.'s life by visiting his memorial at www.mem.com.
Chief J. T. Alley, Jr. was as true a citizen of Lubbock as ever there was. Born here on June 26, 1923, he grew up in the Overton neighborhood, a scrappy and mischievous kid who left Lubbock High School early to enlist in the Marine Corps. During his tour of duty he served as an MP, discovering the work that would become his life; discharged from military service on September 4, 1946, he became a patrolman on his hometown police force that same day. Lubbock was then a small city policed by a correspondingly small force of officers who walked their beats - at the time they had a fleet of only two squad cars - relying on call boxes instead of two-way radios. The city grew in the nation's post-war prosperity boom, and J. T.'s career blossomed with it. He was promoted to sergeant in a year, elevated to captain before he had earned his five-year service pin, and named Deputy Chief in early 1953. On November 14, 1957, he was appointed Chief of Police, the position that he held until his retirement on January 31, 1983, making his tenure the longest in city history and one of the longest in Texas. J. T. enjoyed an equally long retirement of travel, bowling, and time spent with his family. He bowled his last game in late February, two nights before the onset of the brief illness that took him on April 27; two months before of his 86 birthday.
Chief Alley led the men and women of the Lubbock Police Department with a steady hand and a firm, quiet demeanor. His strength came from his devotion to his officers and his city, but his power came from the fairness with which he treated them all. He will be most quickly remembered for guiding Lubbock through the turbulent 1960s and the great tornado of 1970. But those closest to him will remember that he was most proud of the things that he created and fostered. He was an innovator in policing, starting the department's first juvenile division, its first K-9 Corps and SWAT teams, and the Texas Police Chiefs' Association. And in a very difficult time and place, he led the department's integration, not simply in hiring but by personally ensuring that officers of all races and cultures were treated equally in assignments and promotions. Though he never took a college degree, he encouraged his officers in theirs, and was forever proud of his own graduations from the FBI Academy and the Northwestern Traffic Institute.
He was equally proud of family. He married Dorris Reed in 1944 and the pair had five daughters. In 1976, he married Wanda Bullock, and is survived by her and by his four daughters, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren, in the families of Mary Ann and Andy Wilkinson and their son Ian Wilkinson and daughter Emily Arellano; Patricia Alley; Billie McMinn and her daughters Kristen McMinn, Marnie McMinn, and son Alex McMinn; and Tori and Brian Harrison and their daughters Jayme Wilson, Jennifer Mitchell, and son Matt Harrison.
Chief Alley was preceded in death by his parents, Edna and J. T. Alley, Sr.; three sisters, Grace Carter, Wanda Chapman, and Mary Atchinson; two brothers, Clayton Warren and Ted Alley; a daughter, Ann Marie Alley; a son-in-law, Bob McMinn; and his first wife, Dorris Reed Alley.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, May 1, 2009 at St. Luke's United Methodist Church (45th and Memphis) in Lubbock. Burial will follow in Resthaven Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be members of the Lubbock Police Department. Visitation will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 30, 2009 in the Abbey Chapel at Resthaven Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to a favored charity.
Please join us in celebrating J.T.'s life by visiting his memorial at www.mem.com.
Chief Alley led the men and women of the Lubbock Police Department with a steady hand and a firm, quiet demeanor. His strength came from his devotion to his officers and his city, but his power came from the fairness with which he treated them all. He will be most quickly remembered for guiding Lubbock through the turbulent 1960s and the great tornado of 1970. But those closest to him will remember that he was most proud of the things that he created and fostered. He was an innovator in policing, starting the department's first juvenile division, its first K-9 Corps and SWAT teams, and the Texas Police Chiefs' Association. And in a very difficult time and place, he led the department's integration, not simply in hiring but by personally ensuring that officers of all races and cultures were treated equally in assignments and promotions. Though he never took a college degree, he encouraged his officers in theirs, and was forever proud of his own graduations from the FBI Academy and the Northwestern Traffic Institute.
He was equally proud of family. He married Dorris Reed in 1944 and the pair had five daughters. In 1976, he married Wanda Bullock, and is survived by her and by his four daughters, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren, in the families of Mary Ann and Andy Wilkinson and their son Ian Wilkinson and daughter Emily Arellano; Patricia Alley; Billie McMinn and her daughters Kristen McMinn, Marnie McMinn, and son Alex McMinn; and Tori and Brian Harrison and their daughters Jayme Wilson, Jennifer Mitchell, and son Matt Harrison.
Chief Alley was preceded in death by his parents, Edna and J. T. Alley, Sr.; three sisters, Grace Carter, Wanda Chapman, and Mary Atchinson; two brothers, Clayton Warren and Ted Alley; a daughter, Ann Marie Alley; a son-in-law, Bob McMinn; and his first wife, Dorris Reed Alley.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, May 1, 2009 at St. Luke's United Methodist Church (45th and Memphis) in Lubbock. Burial will follow in Resthaven Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be members of the Lubbock Police Department. Visitation will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 30, 2009 in the Abbey Chapel at Resthaven Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to a favored charity.
Please join us in celebrating J.T.'s life by visiting his memorial at www.mem.com.
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