Obituaries: Newton Marion Hyde, 1935, Winn Parish, LA Submitted by Greggory E. Davies, 120 Ted Price Lane, Winnfield, LA 71483 ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** From: February 15, 1935 Winnfield News-American Funeral Services For N. M. Hyde Held Friday Afternoon Member of One of Parish's Old Families Dies In Monroe by Judge R. W. Oglesby Newton Marion Hyde was born in Grant Parish, Louisiana on the 23rd day of July, 1858, and died an Monroe on February 7, 1935 and on the following day his remains were buried in the Winnfield Cemetery following a funeral at the Methodist Church. When he moved to Winnfield in 1903 we lived neighbors to the Hydes and of course became well acquainted with them and their very interesting family of two girls and nine boys all of whom are still living. About fifteen years ago Mrs. Hyde died and the home was broken up. She was one of the best women I ever knew. She not only claimed to be religious but was religious and showed it by both precept and example. I am glad of the opportunity to pay her this belated tribute. They were both even tempered, quiet and unobtrusive and trusted in a kind providence to guide them in every walk of life. To have been otherwise constituted they would not have lived as long as they did with those nine helter-skelter boys to look after. They were not bad boys, but just boys who loved outdoor life better than a stuffy schoolroom. They knew every inch of the country for miles on all sides of Winnfield, and, if they had not been hardy fellows, they would not have lived to reach manhood. When the timber and land speculators from the north came into this country to look over the magnificent pine lands, Mr. Hyde acted as a guide. In this way, he learned the timber business and how to make an estimate of standing timber. He saw that he could make more money buying and selling than he could acting as a guide, so he launched out on his own hook. The records will show that his name appears as often, or oftener than any other individual in Winn Parish. He was kind and soft spoken and optimistic to a marked degree. I never heard him speak evil of anyone, and, if he made any enemies in his many deals, I never heard of it. This shows that he was just in his dealings and never resorted to tricky methods. His motto was quick sales with small profits and satisfied customers. If he had had the capital he would have been a rich man, for the possibilities were very real for him. Without capital, he was forced to sell without holding and for a small profit. He succeeded so well in his new line of work that he moved to Winnfield in 1899 and bought a nice lot on Maple Street where he built a nice home in which he lived with his family until he left Winnfield after the death of his wife. After the timber business played out he went into the oil business and was quite successful. When the Homer field came in he went to Claiborne Parish and assembled a large acreage around Haynesville where, after his leases had expired by limitation, a big field was brought in. If he could have gotten drilling operations started while his leases were effective, he would have been a very rich man as well as a large number of his friends in Winnfield who were interested in his leases. Such are the vicissitudes of life. The good Lord just didn't think it best for Uncle Newt to be rich, and Uncle Newt never grumbled or complained about his failure to be rich for he was not of the complaining kind. He took things as they came and came up smiling even if lady luck turned against him. You could never tell from his expressions whether he had won or lost. He was very religious and enjoyed nothing better than attending a revival. About 25 years ago he and a few other faithful members of the Methodist Protestant Church built a nice church near his home and maintained it for many years and his home was the headquarters for the preachers. After he left, the church went down and the building was moved away. His dying message was, "if you want to find me, Jesus will tell you where I am." On December 17, 1932, he was very happily married to Mrs. Ella Oliver of Monroe, who proved just as faithful in his old age, as his first wife did in his youth. She, with nine of his children, two fo them, Clyde and Brent, being on the road could not be located, accompanied the remains to Winnfield to be deposited in that spot so sacred in so many of us. It was a beautiful sight, on a beautiful day, to see those stalwart sons and daughters, with their children and many friends of the long ago paying tribute to this good man. No one could have asked more and no one deserved it better than he. Rev. O. L. Tucker's discourse on "Immortality" will live long in the minds of those in attendance.