William Alsover Coale ’51

Bill graduated from Allentown (Pa.) High School. At Princeton, he was in NROTC and majored in mechanical engineering. He was a member of Campus Club and roomed with Louis Emanuel, Earle Helton, and G.D. Williams. 

Following graduation Bill spent 26 years in the Navy, serving on submarines, destroyers, cruisers, and amphibious ships as well as onshore staff assignments. His work included the development and initial deployment of the Polaris missile submarine program. In an article about Bill’s work as navigator on the first nuclear missile submarine, Life Magazine noted that his ship was covertly sent to sea during the Cuban Missile Crisis. 

Retiring as a Commander, he returned to Allentown and embarked on a second career in the insurance business before moving to the Cape Cod town of Cotuit with his wife, Doris, where he died Oct. 26, 2022. Bill is survived by Doris, two children, and four grandchildren.