Lewis Donelson Wellford's Obituary
Lewis Donelson Wellford was born September 6, 1920 in Buenos Aires, Argentina to Marion R. and Henrietta P. Wellford. He was the oldestof four children. He was preceded in death by his brother Marion Wellford and sister Phyllis Wellford Fleming. Donald R. Wellford survives him. Lewis grew up in New Orleans and attended Isidore Newman High School where he excelled in athletics. Before he graduated he had been state Tennis Champion in both singles and doubles and set the state record for the pole vault and high jump. Lewis also played basketball and was All-City for two years. He earned a full scholarship to Southwestern at Memphis for football. He gave up his scholarship in football after one year because his grandfather requested he resign because in his opinion it was “too violent”. He went on to earn 13 letters at Southwestern and was elected to what is now the Rhodes Athletic Hall of Fame. Upon graduation in 1943, Lewis entered the Navy and served in the South Pacific during Wold War II as Lieutenant JG. After the war, Lewis went into the family cooperage business and lived a brief time in Vicksburg, MS. While there he was a member of the AAU National Bolleyball Championship team. After the family sold Chickasaw Wood products to National Distillers, Lewis entered into business at the J.E. Dilworth Company which his family had acquired. Over the next several years he moved back and forth between Jackson, MS. and Memphis returning to Memphis in 1960. He was a member of the University Cluband won several club championships in “fat hand ball”. In 1965 Jack Gilespie and he won the city small handball championship. He also loved tennis and competed until he was no longer able to at age 75, winning too many tournaments to mention. You could find him on Saturday afternoons competing at “Club International” both accepting and dishing out the remarks to his fellow competitors. He was known for his famous Match-Point “cackle”. Lewis became partners with Peyton Hoshall in Hoshall Machinery working in the waste treatment and lift pump business. He stayed active until he was 80 years old. Lewis loved to do wood working and made many furniture pieces for friends and family. He was an active member of Idlewild Presbyterian Church, singing in the choir and leading the singing in the TK Young Bible class. He was preceded in death by Peggy Crews Wellford with whom he had Gail Wellford Kater, Beth Wellford Hinton, and Scott P. Wellford. He later married Dorothy Townsend and raised her three boys Tommy Townsend, Kelly Townsend and Danny Townsend as if they were his own. After Dorothy’s passing, he married Winnie New whom he had known from Southwestern. Lewis left eight grandchildren, Elliott Kater, Scott Kater, Elizabeth Hinton, Alex Hinton, Joshua Hinton, Olivia Hinton, Peterson Wellford, and Crews Wellford.
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