Lewis “Louie” Russell Locke was born in Jewell County, Kansas, on December 26, 1912, to Terrance and Opal Smith Locke. His father was a minister with the Free Methodist Church. Louie attended high school in Lebanon, Kansas, where he was active with the football and basketball teams. In fact, he carried a back injury throughout his life that resulted from playing high school sports.
He married a local woman and moved to Canon City, Colorado, where he worked on a truck farm. Their daughter, Margaret, was born in 1933.
In 1942, Louie moved to Corvallis to work for Ralph Chapman Industries, producing war housing cabinets and refrigeration units for local businesses. He later worked for Wilson Motors in Corvallis, starting the tire service center before becoming a mechanic.
Polly Decker was descended from pioneer families who settled south of Philomath. She was born July 6, 1923, to Paul and Dorothy (Moore) Decker in the home of her maternal grandparents, John and Mina Moore. Her paternal grandparents, Franklin and Mary (Phillips) Decker, sold the right of way through their property for the creation of what is now Decker Road.
Polly graduated from Corvallis High School in 1941. She then moved to Salem. During the way, she commuted via shuttle bus to work as a welder in Portland at the Oregon Shipyards. After sustaining an injury, she went to work at Camp Adair in 1943, then moved back to Corvallis after being hospitalized with the flu in 1944.
After Louie’s first marriage ended, he and his brother Charlie walked into Mrs. Smith’s Cafe, across from the Corvallis Gazette-Times office on Southwest Third and Jefferson. Louie took one look at the waitress, Polly Decker, and told his brother, “I’m going to marry that girl.” That was in the fall of 1944, and less than a year later, Louie proposed. He and Polly were married July 23, 1945, at the home of Judge Denman.