Biography

E. L. (Edward Lester) Woodall was a retired businessman and long-time fire chief in Smithfield, NC.

Woodall, the son of Willis Lester and Betty Vandel Hood Woodall, was born January 7, 1894. He married Ruth Schmick in 1921, and they had two sons, Dr. Leonard S. Woodall, of Smithfield, NC, and Edward L. Woodall, of Lyndhurst, OH.

Woodall operated Woodall’s Vulcanizing Shop on Market Street in Smithfield for 33 years. After selling his business in 1959, he went into business with his brother, Hubert Woodall, selling metal awnings.

He had a passion for the work of the Smithfield Fire Department. In 1910 at the young age of 16, he began volunteering and went on to serve as a fireman for the next 52 years. He was named Chief the last 22 years of his time with the Department.

A U. S. Army veteran of World War I, he was a member of Centenary Methodist Church, the Kiwanis Club, Smithfield Chamber of Commerce, and the Fellowship Lodge 84 of the Masonic Order.

Woodall died May 7, 1980, and is buried beside his wife in Riverside Cemetery in Smithfield.

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