Edward Murrell Butler

Edward Murrell Butler

Born January 4, 1937, Murrell Butler died at Lane Memorial Hospital on October 19, 2021. A lifelong resident of St. Francisville, he was an incredibly talented artist, naturalist and dedicated preservationist whose subjects included not only birds but huge landscapes and swamp scenes, detailed butterfly life stages, even frogs which reminded him of how his elementary school teachers would get him to draw frogs for the bulletin boards. He grew up on Butler Greenwood Plantation where his parents and grandparents surrounded him with fine art and books, and encouraged his talent. An old-school gentleman (but with liberal politics), he was also a humble gentle man, generous and kind. Not everybody knew he was also a world traveler, delighting in birding trips with like-minded colleagues to Africa, Spain, South and Central America as well as the states. He created a blooming oasis in the middle of a cow pasture when he built his two-story log home surrounded by immense live oaks, bubbling fountains and outdoor aviaries, where he welcomed birders for campouts, nature walks and hummingbird festivals. His intricately detailed paintings of birds naturally led to comparisons with Audubon, at which he demurred, but he was definitely most at peace in the same woods the earlier artist trod in the 1820s. Lying in the hospital bed in Zachary, he said he had such a wonderful view of a beautiful river glistening in the sun outside his window; it was actually insulated piping on a rooftop, but maybe he really did see that beautiful river, and there was a gorgeous full moon the night he crossed it. He is survived by a brother, Patrick L. Butler and his wife Lucie, their three daughters, Meg, Weezie and Adair, and several great-nephews and great-niece. He was predeceased by his parents, Laurie and Gwin Murrell Butler, as well as his longtime partner Jim Mire. Masonic graveside services will be held at Grace Episcopal Church in St. Francisville on Thursday, October 28, 2021 at 10am.