Edward Joseph Doyle Jr., 95, died Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009 at William F. Green Veteran’s Home.
He was educated at McGill High School and the American University. He had a career in banking and accounting and served in Gen. George Patton’s Third Army in France and Germany in World War II.
However, he is probably best known for the marvelous structures which he built alone and by hand to retain the bluff at his home at Ecor Rouge. This project involved placing huge creosoted posts and boards that were all attached with metal rods so that it looked like a giant spider web. The structure was about 80 feet high and one hundred feet wide. This was all accomplished by manual labor and involved hauling thousands of loads of sand by wheelbarrow. He was in his late 60s and early 70s during that project. When he was in his 80s, he completed a similar structure at his daughter’s house on Fly Creek. He was nicknamed “the human ant” by one of his neighbors.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Elaine Giddens Doyle in 1975.
Survivors include a daughter, Diana Doyle Snow; son, Michael Kenneth Doyle (Kathryn Ashmore); four grandchildren, Mark Matheson Snow (Diane Bradford), Todd Harrison Snow (Sheri Thistlewaite), Alaina Kathryn Doyle and Kaitlyn Ansley Doyle; four great-grandchildren, Mark Matherson Snow Jr., Katherine Stella Snow, Taylor Elizabeth Snow, and Nicholas Parker Snow; brother, John Francis Doyle; four nieces, Nancy Doyle (Robert) Stine, Ansley Giddens (Nils) Green, Terese Elaine Giddens (Toulmin) Greer and Kay Giddens (Ian) Glenday; one nephew, David (Diana) Doyle, other relatives and friends.
A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 10 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Daphne. Visitation will follow.
The family requests memorial donations be made to the building fund of St. Paul’s Church.
Arrangements are by Wolfe-Bayview Funeral Homes & Crematory Inc., Fairhope.
