Eligah Tice “Popeye” Autry Jr.
Eligah Tice Autry, Jr., was born in Dustin Oklahoma on May 6, 1920, but his family moved to LeFors, Texas a few years later. Eligah’s father was an Army Veteran of World War I; his mother, Carrie Lanhan Autry, was a homemaker.
As a teenager, Eligah not only looked like the comic strip character, Popeye, but did an impressive impersonation of the spinach-eating cartoon character singing “Popeye the Sailor Man.” It wasn’t long before everyone was calling Eligah “Popeye.” He used the nickname to campaign for election as the honorary fire chief of Gray County, Texas during Boy Scout Week. Scouts could campaign for city, county, and federal office holders for a day, but Fire Chief was the most coveted because of the perks – playing billiards on the station’s billiards table and sliding down the “elevator pole.” In 1938, he appealed to the voters by nailing the cartoon character’s grimace and voice and promising that “fire trucks would pass by the homes of all the Scouts who voted for him.” His popularity among the scouts won him votes for several years. Eligah achieved the rank of Eagle Scout before graduating from high school in LeFors.
With the nickname of Popeye, it seemed only fitting that in August 1939, nineteen-year-old Eligah should enlist in the United States Navy. He served on the USS Oklahoma before being assigned to the USS Arizona in October 1939. He was a Coxswain Third Class on the Arizona when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7 th , 1941.
Most of the USS Arizona crewmen who perished that day were killed instantly during a massive explosion. The ship quickly sank to the bottom of the harbor along with 1,177 of the 1,512 personnel on board, representing about half of the total number of Americans killed that day.
Coxswain Eligah Tice Autry, Jr.’s remains have never been recovered and are interred at the USS Arizona Memorial of Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii. His name is inscribed on the Walls of the Missing in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also located in Honolulu.
Texas Panhandle War Memorial is especially honored to display a large piece of the side and deck of the USS Arizona. It is an outdoor exhibit, encased in Plexiglas for easy viewing and protection from the environment. The exhibit is a reminder of the brave Veterans who gave their lives for our country that unforgettable day, including Coxswain “Popeye” Autry.
