Phillip "Phil" Miller

Phillip "Phil" J. Miller was born on July 7, 1914, and was raised in Upland, Indiana. He graduated from Upland High School in 1932, where he excelled in academics and athletics, and during his senior year he led the Upland Highlanders to the County Baseball Championship by pitching a one-hit game. He attended Taylor University and graduated in 1936, participating in multiple sports and setting records that stood into the 1960s. After graduating, he played professional baseball and basketball. In 1938, he married Josephine Erler, and they raised three sons, Ed, Jim, and John. In the early 1940s, he was Taylor's head basketball coach and later served as the university's athletic director. He also worked for Indiana Michigan Power from 1943 to 1946. In 1946, he and Josephine purchased the Ford dealership in Upland and operated it together until his death. They were members of the Upland Chamber of Commerce and Upland United Methodist Church. He joined the Upland Volunteer Fire Department in 1946 and served as captain. He suffered a fatal heart attack while fighting a fire in 1968. In 1973, he was posthumously inducted as a charter member of the Taylor University Athletic Hall of Fame for his achievements in baseball and basketball, and in 2008 he was honored by the Upland Volunteer Fire Department for his dedicated service. Many of his three children, seven grandchildren, and multiple great-grandchildren still live in the Upland area.

Upland, Indiana · United States