Houston Newton Barton

Houston Newton Barton

Houston Newton Barton, 91, passed away Nov. 2, 2009, at his residence in Gold Beach.

A memorial service will be  at 2:30 p.m., Nov. 7, in the Seventh Day Adventist Church, 94191 Third St., in Gold Beach. 

Mr. Barton was born Aug. 12, 1918, in Vandervoort, Ark., to Newton Houston and Dolly Lavata (Griffith) Barton. 

He married  Edna Mildred Gaskin, April 22, 1939, in his hometown.

He is survived by his son Gerald Barton and wife Jean; daughter Sharon Barton-Thompson and husband Jim; brother Edward Barton and wife Jane; sister Rose Kennedy; grandchildren Jim Barton, Bob Barton and wife Kermadine, and Bart Lund; great-grandchildren Jessica and Chrystal, Robert and wife Mureen, Randy and Rayea, and Bobbie and husband Chris; great-great-grandchildren Hailey, Allie, and Devin; and his faithful dog Benji. He is also survived by his companion Ann Chapman.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 63 years, Edna,  in 2003; daughter Wilma; granddaughters Judy and Traci.

Mr. Barton served in the U.S. Army throughout the Asiatic Pacific Theater in World War II. This included serving in the occupation forces in Tokyo,.

He came to Curry County in 1952 where he owned and operated his own logging company, then a trucking company. In the 1980s he and his son Gerald opened a body shop  where at one time they employed four generations of the family. In the late 1980s he and Edna became snowbirds. With Myrtle Creek as their base, they began traveling extensively and were especially fond of spending winters in Quartzite, Ariz.

In 2006 he moved back to Gold Beach to live at Shore Pines. Mr. Barton truly enjoyed living there among the encouraging and caring neighbors and staff. He wanted to be, “at home” there to the end.

He will be lovingly remembered by family and friends as a quiet, personal man who enjoyed investing his time and skills in his family. He made it a point to always buy his grandchildren their first bicycle. He also enjoyed fishing, hunting, and working on cars with his kids.

Submitted by Redwood Memorial Chapel.