Thomas Baytop Fitzhugh

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      Sex: M

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Individual Information

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     Birth Date: 24 Feb 1938
    Christening: 
          Death: 20 Oct 2023 - Augusta, Woodruff, AR ( at age 85)
         Burial: 28 Oct 2023 - Augusta Memorial Park, Augusta, Woodruff, AR
 Cause of Death: 

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Parents

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         Father: Living
         Mother: Living

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Spouses and Children

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1. Living
       Children:
                1. Thomas Fitzhugh 
                2. Living 

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Notes

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General:

Mr. Thomas Baytop Fitzhugh, Jr., died peacefully at home in Augusta, Ark., on Friday, October 20, 2023. He was born on February 24, 1938 in Little Rock, Ark., to Miriam Cornish and Thomas Baytop Fitzhugh, Sr.
Bay, as he was known to everyone, graduated from Columbia Military Academy and received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he was a member of SAE fraternity. He earned an MBA from Columbia University in New York. Several years later he earned a JD from the University of Arkansas Law School.
For many years, Bay served as Augusta City Attorney and as a member of the Augusta School Board. He was a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church where he served on the vestry and the search committee.
He enjoyed and revered the outdoors. He boated and fished on the Gulf coast and for redfish in south Louisiana. He enjoyed taking his sons to the Little Red River for trout and to Taylor Bay for trot lining. He had great duck hunting on his farm north of Augusta and invited many friends to hunt with him; they said he was a lousy shot but could call them in. He also loved music, particularly Grand Opera.
When Bay became aware of Rex Hancock's crusade to save the Cache River he contacted him and became the attorney and a dedicated advocate for the Citizens Committee to Save the Cache. He succeeded in stopping the harmful dumping of excess water and sediment into Taylor Bay through a personal lawsuit and years of appeals. He also represented the Ozark Society in a lawsuit to keep the Mulberry River open to recreation as a navigable stream, helping to preserve this popular river. Later in his career he was a central figure in the development of natural gas activity in Woodruff County, making initial contact with a gas exploration geologist and drafting leases between developers and landowners.
Bay is survived by his wife of 45 years, Dorothy (Dorrie) Beasley Fitzhugh; son, Henry Coles Fitzhugh (Poppy Markwell) of New Orleans, La.; step-son, Mike Dolby of Oxford, Miss.; step-daughter, Liza Dolby Mallette (Pope) of Oxford, Miss.; brother, Rob Rudner (Nancy) of New Orleans, La.; brother, Davis Fitzhugh (Brenda) of Little Rock; and five grandchildren, Douglas and Miriam Fitzhugh, Reid, Maggie and Pope Mallette.
Mr. Fitzhugh is preceded in death by his son, Thomas Baytop Fitzhugh, III; parents, Thomas Baytop Fitzhugh, Sr. and Miriam Cornish Rudner; his step-parents, Oscar Rudner and Camille Fitzhugh; his aunt and uncle, with whom he lived after his parents died, Dorrie and Davis Fitzhugh, and three brothers, Edward Cornish Fitzhugh, Jim Fitzhugh and Chris Rudner.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 28, 2023 in Augusta Memorial Park, Augusta, Ark. Arrangements by Thompson-Wilson Funeral Home of McCrory.