JIM LYONS AND HIS HOT TAMALES

 

When I was growing up, Jim Lyons would come to my parents farm ( Mr. and Mrs. C.L. Sale) every Sunday morning and cut shucks from the corn crib of my dad's.  He used the shucks to wrap the tamales in.  We would  go to church and leave the key to the corn crib for Jim.  He was such an honest person that my dad had no qualms with him having access to the warehouse and corn crib.  Sometime he would still be there when we returned from church.  My mother would always invite him to have lunch with us, but he would always decline saying that Ms Mattie (his wife) was fixing lunch.  (We called it dinner back then.)  Daddy would never take any payment from Jim, so he would bring us hot tamales quite often.  Also Mattie would send us homemade cakes.  Boy, were they good!  My father and Jim Lyons were good friends and it was sad when he could not longer make his tamales.  I think we missed his friendship and visits more than his tamales.  Just good memories of days gone by.

 

Submitted by Carolyn Sale McDaniel  (Class of 1954)

 

As for Jim Lyons and the old bucket he sold hot tamales from, that bucket was made for him by Joe's grandfather, Mr. Luck that owned the shop where the first Webster Parish school-bus was built... Joe has tried for years to find out what became of that old bucket... I hope his daughter, who had a small tamale shop for a while in behind Cone's, has it... she also sold at the State Fair a few years ago... used Jim's old recipe... when I was little, little, you could buy them 2 for a nickel... when we would hear that bell ringing, we'd race for the door to meet Mr. Jim...   He was a good man and everyone loved him... I never saw him that he wasn't smiling...
 

Does anyone have a picture of Mr. Jim Lyons that we could put on Minden Memories?

Submitted by Joan Wylie Luck

 

If you have a memory of Jim Lyons and his hot tamales write and tell us about it @ MindenMemories@AOL.COM

 

 Baptist Church and Mr. Jim Lyons

                                                                                                                     IN MEMORY OF JIM LYONS

Minden Press-Herald, Wednesday, July 30, 1986
The man who peddled hot tamales through the streets of Minden for decades and was an "institution" at Minden's Community House has died.
James "Jim" Lyons passed away Monday, July 28 at Minden Medical Center, where he had been hospitalized for several weeks.  He was 85.
His services will be Friday, Aug. 1 at 2 p.m. at the Union Grove Baptist Church.  Rev. Billy Hawkins will officiate.  Interment will be in the Wilson-Walker Cemetery under direction of Kennon & Sons Mortuary.  The quiet hour will be observed Thursday from 7-8 p.m. with Masonic rites to be delivered by Banner Lodge No. 77.
Mr. Lyons served members of the Woman's Department Club at the Minden Community House for 34 years.  He was a retired city employee and was a deacon in the Union Grove Baptist church.  In 1968 he was the recipient of an award by the department club and in 1976 he was honored by the Minden Beautification Council for his work in the city's parks.
He is survived by his wife, Mattie Lyons; a sister, Carrie Morgan; a brother, Pat Lyons, Jr.; several nieces and nephews, and a host of other relatives and friends.

 


 

1900-1986

Here Lies Jim Lyons

 

Walker Community Cemetery is a very large and well maintained cemetery. Our thanks to Bill Funderburk and Ann Mays Harlan for the pictures of Mr. Lyons markers. Maybe someday someone will submit a picture of Mr. Lyons to go with his marker.