Guy C. Lyman Jr., lawyer and conservationist, dies at age 77
Times Picayune 11-27-2009


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Guy C. Lyman Jr., a New Orleans lawyer who created a second life for himself as a woodsman
and conservationist when he retired to the mountains of Tennessee, died Tuesday of cancer at
his home in Monteagle, Tenn. He was 77.

A native New Orleanian, Mr. Lyman was the son of Guy and Helen Baird Lyman.

His mother had been part of the French Quarter literary scene in the 1920s. William Faulkner,
who lived in the French Quarter then, courted her when she was single and dedicated
"Mosquitoes" and "Helen: A Courtship" to her.

He turned up occasionally during Guy Lyman's childhood, said his son Kevin.

Mr. Lyman finished Tulane University in three years, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. After serving
in the Navy, he earned a law degree at Tulane, where he was an editor of the Tulane Law
Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif, a scholastic honor society.

He joined Milling Benson Woodward, where he specialized in business law and was elected
managing partner.

Mr. Lyman was active in such socially prominent organizations as the Boston and Pickwick
clubs, and he and his wife, Marjory Lyman, became renowned for their New Year's Eve parties,
which they held for about 40 years.

"The draw was my dad," Kevin Lyman said. "He created this convivial atmosphere around him
that drew people back. They knew he was going to be there and holding court."

And one friend said he could mix "a mean old-fashioned," Marjory Lyman said.

He could also be counted on to make bananas Foster, Kevin Lyman said.

After Mr. Lyman retired, he and his wife moved to Monteagle and immersed themselves in rural
life.

"He started a second career as a mountain man," Kevin Lyman said. "He loved chopping wood and
sitting by the fire on a cold night."

Mr. Lyman also became active in environmental issues, his son said, and held events for such
organizations as Friends of Cumberland State Park.

And he became a fixture in Monteagle's Fourth of July parade, riding Big Red, his all-terrain
vehicle, with his wife and dog, followed by a trailer filled with grandchildren, Kevin Lyman
said.

In addition to his wife and son, survivors include two sons, Guy Lyman III of Dallas and
Chris Lyman of Asheville, N.C.: two daughters, Eugenie Lyman of New Orleans and Kim Lyman of
Birmingham, Ala.; a brother, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Jim Lyman of Fairborn, Ohio; and 16
grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held Monday at 12:30 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church, 1329
Jackson Ave. Visitation will start at 11 a.m.

Burial will be private.