William Randall Allen (June 29, 1919 – October 1, 1985) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the Chairman of the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto from 1962 to 1969. He is the namesake of the William R. Allen Road in Toronto, Ontario. Background Born in Buckingham, Quebec (on the outskirts of Ottawa, Ontario), Allen was a graduate of St. Michael's College School, the University of Toronto, and Osgoode Hall Law School. During World War II, he enlisted with the Queen's York Rangers and attained the rank of captain, serving overseas in Britain and Europe. After being called to the Ontario Bar in 1949, Allen was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1960. He married Marjorie Hornberger; together, they raised three children. His father, Robert Aloysius Allen, was an alderman and then a Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament representing Riverdale during the 1930s. Robert Allen was the first Liberal to be elected to the legislature from Riverdale since Confederation in 1867. Robert Allen's father-in-law, Randall McDonnell, was the mayor of Mayo, Quebec for 13 consecutive years. Politics In 1950, William Allen entered municipal politics with his election as an alderman on Toronto city council, representing Riverdale in Ward 1. He subsequently was elected by the City of Toronto to become the youngest Controller in Toronto history. He was a member of the first Metropolitan Toronto Council in 1952. In the 1955 Toronto municipal election, Allen was elected to the Toronto Board of Control and was re-elected in 1956, 1958, and 1960. In 1958 and 1960 he finished in the top two, of the four Controllers elected, enabling him to return to Metro Council. Metropolitan Toronto was created by the Province of Ontario in 1952 and comprised Toronto, North York, Scarborough, Etobicoke, York, and East York. While these municipalities continued to manage some local matters, Metropolitan Toronto assumed the responsibilities of more expensive programs, such as the TTC, police, and welfare. The municipality was presided over by a "super mayor", or Metro Chairman, for its 46-year duration until amalgamation in 1998. Undefeated in civic elections, Allen remained in municipal office until 1962 when, upon the retirement of Fred Gardiner (namesake of the Gardiner Expressway), Allen defeated the Reeve of North York, Norman C. Goodhead, to become the second Chairman of Metropolitan Toronto. At the time, many felt Allen's Catholicism would serve as a roadblock in the election. Allen continued to build the