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Chase County Kansas Obituaries
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Towle,Francis D
The Honorable Francis
D. Towle, 79, died
Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2003,
at Newman Regional
Health in
Emporia. The
Rev. Pat
Ireland officiated at the
Celebration of
Life service
Dec. 27 at the
Chase County High
School Gymnasium
in Cottonwood Falls.
Interment followed in the
Prairie Grove Cemetery. Towle, Francis Duncan
LOSS SADDENS MANY IN CHASE COUNTY
Francis Duncan Towle,
the son of Francis and
Ettawells Duncan Towle,
was born April 21, 1924, at
Scranton. He graduated
from Carbondale High
School. He enlisted in the
U.S. Navy in 1946 and
served until his discharge
in 1948.
He and Lela Mae
Wilcox were married Dec.
23, 1948, in Osage City.
He is survived by his
wife, of the home; two
daughters, Frances L.
Alexander of Council Grove
and Dorothy M. McDonald
of Emporia; five grandchildren; two
great-grandchildren; a brother, Jim Towle
of Osage City; and three
sisters, Helen Foresman of
Kansas City, Kan., Katy
Glynn of Wamego and
Peggy Foster of Osage City.
Memorial contributions
may be sent to the First
Presbyterian Church,
Cottonwood Falls or to the
University of Kansas
Cancer Research in care of
Brown-Bennett-Alexander
Funeral Home, 201 Cherry,
Cottonwood Falls, KS
66845.
Chase County Leader News, Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, Jan 01 2004
Judge Towle earned much respect
BY DEB ZEINER
COTTONWOOD FALLS For many, the
news that Francis Duncan Towle died
Dec. 24, 2003, at Newman Regional
Health brought both tears and fond memories
of the man known variously as Santa
Claus and the Matt Dillon of Chase County.
Towle, 79, was born April 21, 1924 in
Scranton and was a graduate of Carbondale
High School. He served in the U.S.
navy from 1946 until 1948 and was married
to Lela Mae Wilcox on Dec. 23, 1948
in Osage City.
Towle was the Chase County Sheriff
from 1955 to 1959 and from 1963 to 1977 and for 18 of those years, he and his
family lived above the store, residing in
the historic Chase County Courthouse,
where the jail was situated.
In 1977, he became
a magistrate judge for the 5th Judicial
District; he retired on Jan. 13, 1997.
Towle was legendary for both his sense
of humor and his fairness.
I think everybody thought they were
treated fairly if they showed up in front of
him for whatever reason (when he was a
judge), said District Judge Lee Fowler.
As a judge, Towle was well-respected.
When you walked into a courtroom,
he was what you thought a judge should
be, Fowler said. He was very well-respected and had a good demeanor about him.
Jim Atkins, retired as major in charge
of field operations from the Kansas Highway
Patrol in 1980. He first worked with
Towle in 1956.
You never had to worry about your
back when you worked with Francis,
Atkins said. He knew what to do and was
always there if you needed a backup. I just
dont know anybody who didnt think he was a really good lawman.
Atkins said that one of the things that
impressed him about Towle was his willingness
to do whatever needed to be
done, whenever it needed to be done.
I worked the turnpike and part of that
range was in Chase County, he said. Occasionally
Id bring somebody in that Id
picked up and hed help in the processing, day or night. He was just a super kind
of guy.
Atkins said hed miss Towles sense of
humor.
He was not above playing a practical
joke, if the occasion arose, he said. And
he had the good guy/bad guy routine
down pretty well.
Atkins said there was a particular radio
call that Towle used to signify he was taking
a break.
Back in those days, the radio procedure was not as strict as it is now,
he said. Youd be traveling through Chase County and hear him (on the radio)
saying that he was on the way to a bad 10-43. That was just his way of saying he
was going to have coffee.
To the children of Chase County,
Towle was known as Santa
Claus. The Towles had dressed as
Mr. and Mrs. Claus as part of the
Chase County Christmas festivities
for many years, including this
year. A video recording of them patiently
listening to area childrens
wishes at the Chase County Senior
Center has been shown repeatedly
on the Chase County Cable News
channel since Thanksgiving weekend.
He will be missed, Fowler said.
Hes the kind of guy who was the rock of the community.
Emporia Gazaette, Emporia, Kansas, Dec 26, 2003 (pp. 1 and 3)
Obituary (p. 2)
Francis D. Towle,
Veteran
COTTONWOOD FALLS--
Francis D. Towle of Cottonwood
Falls, former magistrate
judge for Chase and Lyon
counties, died Wednesday,
Dec. 24, 2003, at Newman Regional
Health. He was 79.
Sometimes called the Matt Dillon
of Chase County, he was the
Chase County sheriff for 18 years,
from 1955 through 1959 and from
1963 through 1977.
He was a judge
for the 5th District, with 20 years of
service to the judiciary, from 1977 to
1997. He was chosen to attend the
Judicial College in Reno, Nev., and
in 1999, he worked to pass the Juvenile
Justice Reform for the children
of Kansas.
He had his own law library
and spent many hours studying
the law. He helped train sheriffs
and deputies.
Francis Duncan Towle, the son of
Francis and Ettawells Duncan
Towle, was born April 21, 1924, in
Scranton. He graduated from Carbondale
High School.
He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in
1946 and served until his discharge
in 1948.
He married Lela Mae Wilcox on
Dec. 23, 1948, in Osage City.
Mr. Towle was a volunteer with
the Chase County Fire Department
and was an emergency
medical technician. He
also was active in 4-H.
He is survived by his wife;
two daughters, Dorothy M.
McDonald of Emporia and Frances
L. Alexander of Council Grove; a
brother, Jim Towle of Osage City;
three sisters, Peggy Foster of Osage
City, Katy Glynn of Wamego and
Helen Foresman of Kansas City,
Kan.; five grandchildren; and two
great-grandchildren.
A service to celebrate his life will
be at 2 p.m. Saturday in the gymnasium
of Chase County High School
in Cottonwood Falls. The Rev. Pat
Ireland will conduct the service.
Burial will be in Prairie Grove
Cemetery. The family will meet
friends from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. today
at the Brown-Bennett-Alexander Funeral
Home in Cottonwood Falls.
Friends also may call until 8 p.m. today
at the funeral home and at the
school after 10 a.m. Saturday.
Memorial contributions to the
First Presbyterian Church in Cottonwood
Falls or the University of
Kansas Cancer Research Fund may
be sent in care of the funeral home,
201 Cherry St., Cottonwood Falls,
KS 66845.
Emporia Gazaette, Emporia, Kansas, Dec 26, 2003 (p. 2)
A GOOD MAN OF RARE QUALITY
IT WAS A PLEASURE to watch Francis Towle at work in
the courtroom. As magistrate judge, he took no nonsense
and he gave none back. He was tough, fair and direct. He
was harsh when necessary, compassionate when possible.
He could see in the same glance the pain and the humor in human
folly.
On the bench, he did not wrap himself in the majesty of the law
and pronounce judgment from on high. The law spoke for itself. He
just delivered the message, as gently and as courteously as a case
might warrant.
After 18 years as Chase County sheriff, Towle was acquainted
with all of the shades of gray that shadow the world. He knew that
people could make terrible messes of their own and others lives
and that sometimes people could change and lives be put
back in order. He was a clear-eyed optimist, blessed with uncommon
common sense. He knew the world was flawed but that every
day brought a new chance to put things right.
A few minutes with Francis Towle would brighten anybodys day,
but it was with children that he could truly give free rein to all of
the love and kindliness that welled up within him.
Every Christmas for many years, he and his wife, Lela, stood in
for Mr. and Mrs. Claus for the children of Chase County or wherever
else Santa might be needed.
In Cottonwood Falls, after the Christmas lights on the courthouse
were lit, children and their parents would flock to the little
storefront where Santa was holding his jolly court, like a happy
grandfather surrounded by dozens of beloved grandchildren.
Francis Towle, who left us on Christmas Eve, was a good man
who gave the best of himself to everyone he met. By doing that, he
made the world better, as he knew it could be.
Patrick S. Kelley,
Editorial Page Editor
Emporia Gazette, Emporia, Kansas, Dec 29, 2003, p. 4
by Lorna Marvin
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