Whitney R Telle

Telle played a pivotal role in transforming Alabama’s energy production. Beginning in the late 1970s, he helped develop methods for extracting methane from underground coal seams—techniques that revolutionized coalbed methane production that he deployed across the country. His Alabama license plate read MR CH4 (Mr. Methane).

Beyond his scientific achievements, Telle was a beloved historian and collector of stories, antiques, and curiosities. His passion for preservation helped shape and celebrate the heritage of the University of Alabama, the city of Tuscaloosa, the state of Alabama, and the nation.

He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Rita Hodges Telle of Northport, whom he met in 1972 through the first computer dating experiment at the University of Alabama. Two years later, they married at the Wonderland Hotel in Elkmont, Tennessee, inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park—a historic logging inn shut down by the National Park Service in 1992. Telle, his family, and closest friends gathered there every Labor Day weekend in a famous-to-them celebration that came to be known as the End of the World Party. Their Northport home became a living museum to the Wonderland, filled with artifacts from the hotel, including the front porch’s iconic green rocking chairs.

Telle’s roots ran deep across the South. His paternal grandparents, who met on a Mississippi riverboat, relocated to Tuscaloosa from South Louisiana, and he cherished that heritage as much as his ties to Alabama and East Tennessee.

He is also survived by his sons, Adam Ruyle Telle (wife Shelby) and Andrew Morrow Telle (wife Caitlin) four grandchildren Anne Hardee, Evangeline, Graham, and Jet; his sister, Nota Dollar; and his brothers, Anthony and Ronny Telle. He was preceded in death by his father, Royce Ruyle Telle of Cullman, and mother, Jeannine Pack Wilkins of Lipscomb.

His family will soon celebrate his life and legacy exactly as he wanted: with a party.