Longtime Davisboro Fire Chief Al Alligood dies at 71
Alligood served as Davisboro fire chief for more than 30 years and held multiple public safety roles in Washington County.
DAVISBORO, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Longtime Davisboro Fire Chief and community leader William Alton “Al” Alligood has died. He was 71.
Alligood died peacefully at his home on Monday surrounded by family, according to his obituary.
He spent more than three decades serving the City of Davisboro and Washington County in public safety and public works roles.
The Davisboro Volunteer Fire Department announced Alligood’s death in a Facebook post, calling him the cornerstone of the department and crediting him with helping build it into what it is today.
According to the obituary, Chief Alligood served as fire chief for 32 years. He also worked as a licensed EMT with the Washington County Ambulance Service and served as the City of Davisboro’s Director of Public Works for more than 16 years.
A lifelong Washington County resident, Alligood graduated from Washington County High School in 1973 and was known by the nickname “Gator,” a name he earned through high school football and church league softball. He later served in both the U.S. Army and the National Guard, where he was trained as an explosives expert.
Outside of public service, Alligood worked more than 30 years in industrial maintenance, including time at American Industrial Clay Company and Imerys. He and his wife also owned and operated the Hitching Post restaurant in downtown Davisboro for several years.
He’s remembered by family and friends as a skilled carpenter and plumber, an avid go-kart and mini stock car racer, and someone who “never met a stranger.”
Alligood was preceded in death by his wife, Nellie Welch Alligood, his parents and two siblings.
A funeral service celebrating his life will be held Friday, February 20, at 11 a.m. at White Oak Church, with burial to follow in the church cemetery with military honors. Visitation is scheduled for Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m. at May and Smith Funeral Home.
Donations in his memory may be made to the Davisboro Fire Department.
