The pale horse and his rider came swiftly a few days ago and carried the fallen soldier of renown, W. L. Totty, from the stormy battlefield to the land of rest and reward. He was born in Hickman County, Tennessee, March 1, 1903, and died April 29, 1982, after a week of illness in the hospital. Brother Totty's health had been declining for some time, but in the last three months, decline was more rapid.

He was married to the former Daisy Belle Allen. She preceded him in death on January 19, 1975. Survivors include sons David and Bill; brother A.C. and Glen (Pete); sister Nell Weeks, Callie roberts and Dorris Kemp; six grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Brother Totty was baptized by I.B. Bradley in 1919. He began preaching in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1926 and did not quit until 53 years later when he was unable to continue. For 43 years and three months, he preached in the city of Indianapolis. He preached for the Southside, Garfield Heights and Shelbyville Road congregations. he prepared and delivered his sermons without written notes. We shall not see his like again. He had the ability to quote many chapters from memory. His preaching carried him from Canada to Florida and from West Virginia to Oklahoma. His most notable work came in the defense of the gospel. The number of clashes with the terrorists was about a hundred. The Lord endowed him with a good mind and a heart of courage. He showed no fear nor favor to any man, whether it was a friend or foe. Among his more notable debates were: Totty-Andrews, "Premillennialism," 1938; Totty-Sloan, "Salvation and Apostasy," 1940; Totty-Ketcherside, "Bible Colleges and Orphan Home," 1942; Totty-Welch, "Pentecostalism," 1949, 1951; Totty-Magee, "Godhead," 1960; Totty-Gregory, "Baptism," 1951, 1953, 1954; Totty-Grider, "Orphan Home," 1958, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967.

The services were held at the Shelbyville Road Church of Christ at 1:00p.m. on Saturday, May 1, 1982. The building was almost filled with family and friends who came to pay their respects. Congregational singing was led by James Hackett; prayer, led by Jimmy Thompson; and the writer conducted the services. The pallbearers were the grandsons of W.L. Totty. His final resting place is Forest Lawn Cemetery.

The main points made in the lesson were: (1) the comfort of the scriptures; (2) his works do follow him; and (3) what God says to us in such times. Under the heading "His Works Do Follow Him" there were four main sub-points: (a) he loved the truth; (b) he loved the church; he loved children; and (d) in spite of heartaches which came, he never lost his sense of humor. He sudden to say, "I don't eat anything that grows feathers."

It was an honor bestowed upon me by the family to preach this soldier's funeral. It was nice to know one whose life overlapped with some of the other greats of the restoration movement. He knew A. G. Freed, F.B. Srygley, N.B. Hardeman, G.C. Brewer, H.Leo Boles, B.C. Goodpasture, and many others.

The Shepherd's psalm was read at the gravesite. This was probably one of the first passages of scripture Brother Totty learned when he was a boy. A prayer closed the services.

Certainly W.L. Totty could say, as the apostle Paul, "I have fought a good fight . . ." (2 Timothy 4:7-8.)

-Ben F. Vick, Jr., 4915 Shelbyville Road, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46227, Gospel Advocate, 1982, p.298

Twenty-seven years ago a brother Love who was an elderly gospel  preacher then, told me at Kingston, Tennessee that more than 500 gospel preachers were born and reared in Hickman Couny, Tennessee. One of these was W. L. (Will) Totty.

Will Totty proudly told people publicly and privately that he was from Totty's Bend in Hickman County. He was born there March 1, 1903. J. W. McGarvey was born on March 1, 74 years earlier in 1829 at Hopkinsville, Kentucky.

Brother Totty's health was poor for several years preceding his death. He died in Indianapolis, Indiana April 29, 1982.

W. L. Totty married Daisy Belle Allen. She preceded him in death January 19, 1975.

Will is survived by two sons, David and Bill; six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; two brothers A. C. and Glen; and three sisters, Nell Weaks, Callie Roberts, and Doris Kemp.

KNEW HIM WELL

I knew Will Totty more than a third of a century. I knew him well. He stayed in our home at various times, and I visited in his home.

Will and Daisy Belle were very hospitable. I was never associated with a man who was more polite and courteous than this couple.

MISSION WORK

Carson Burroughs and I were associated with brother Totty in our mission work in Eastern Kentucky for many years. Because of the influence of him with the Garfield Heights congregation in Indianapolis I was able to get that church to support me and brother Burroughs many years in mission work in Eastern Kentucky. Brother Burroughs preached in a number of gospel meetings where brother Totty was the regular preacher in Indianapolis, Indiana. He has spoken to me a number of times how royally brother Totty and the church always  treated him.

HIS WORK AS AN EVANGELIST

Brother Totty was baptized by I.B. Bradley in 1919. He began his preaching career in Nashville, Tennessee in 1926. He preached for more than 50 years. He preached in Indianapolis, Indiana 43 years for Southside, Garfield Heights, and Shelbyville Road congregations. He preached for Garfield Heights Church for a large majority of his 43 years in Indianapolis.

DEBATES

Will Totty was an able debater. He had about 100 debates. It was my privilege to attend several of the debates in which he was engaged.

I moderated for him in a debate he had with A. C. Grider in 1958. Brother Totty had a strong mind. I often said he could have been one of the nation's greatest attorneys.

SENSE OF HUMOR

Brother Totty loved good humor, and he knew a lot of it. I always enjoyed his telling funny stories about amusing people, especially some he related about people in Totty's Bend and Hickman County. He told of an uncle who was very stingy. This uncle would always insist that the wheat thrasher crew would bring the thrasher to his place in an afternoon so they would not be there to eat the noon meal. Will said that one year the crew brought the thrasher in a morning. His uncle said, "You will be through and gone before noon, won't you?" They assured him they would be gone before noon! But after they thrashed wheat awhile, they pretended that the thrasher was broken, and they began to act as though they were trying to repair it. They told Will's uncle they would have to eat the noon meal at his house! The uncle told his wife and she prepared a rather skimpy meal. When the hungry wheat thrashers sat down at the table they soon ate everything and wiped every bowl clean! Whereupon the old uncle said to his wife, "You fixed just enough to the bite."

FUNERAL

Brother Totty's funeral service was conducted in the meeting place of Shelbyville Road Church of Christ in Indianapolis at 1:00, May 1, 1982. A large crowd assembled for the memorial service. Congregational singing was directed bv James Hackett. Jimmy Thompson led the prayer. Ben F. Vick, Jr., the regular preacher, preached the sermon. Brother Totty's grandsons were the pallbearers. The body was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Indianapolis. With a multitude of others, I rejoice in the one hope (Ephesians 1:4) and long for the time when ". . . all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation." (John 5:28, 29.)

—Basil Overton, World Evangelist, June, 1982, pages 4,5,

In June, 2009 Tom L. Childers, C. Wayne Kilpatrick and Scott Harp traveled about 3000 miles in one week through parts of Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. During this time we found the graves of 75 church leaders in the Restoration Movement. Chronicling these leaders into websites has been time consuming. Many thanks to Tom and Wayne in helping to take photos, share the driving, and putting up with your web master's slave-driving effort to see as many as we did in the time we had. Their photos as well as some of mine are seen on this site.

Another particular interest in the life of W.L. Totty is in the way of his connection to one of the elders where your webeditor preaches. I preach for the Buford Church of Christ, Buford, Georgia. Bob and Helen Conolty have attended Buford a number of years. The Conoltys are from the Hoosier State and attended for years at the Garfield Heights Church of Christ. Bob was baptized into Christ by W.L. Totty. Both he and Helen have wonderful memories of their years under his tutelage. Bob has been an elder in a number of congregations through the years, and has served Buford the last several years in a most wonderful way, a service that greatly speaks of the spiritual heritage they grew in under the influence of W.L. Totty.