ENROLLED
2018 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 215
BY REPRESENTATIVE COX
A RESOLUTION
To commend Hilton Lytle upon his 2018 induction into the Louisiana Folklife Center Hall
of Master Folk Artists.
WHEREAS, the Louisiana Folklife Center is an agency of Northwestern State
University of Louisiana and was established in 1976; and
WHEREAS, the mission of the Louisiana Folklife Center is to identify, document,
and present Louisiana's rich history of folklore and folklife, and the center serves as an
archival repository for many folklife materials; and
WHEREAS, the Hall of Master Folk Artists, which was started in 1981, currently has
more than one hundred distinguished inducted honorees in celebration of Louisiana's vibrant
and diverse folk culture; and
WHEREAS, a respected instrument builder, Hilton "Hil" Lytle grew up in Jena,
Louisiana; he learned the names of all the trees in his area, and that knowledge led to
crafting toys from the various woods, which would serve him later in life; and
WHEREAS, Hil Lytle answered the call of duty from his country and was deployed
overseas for military service in World War II; upon his return, he majored in industrial
education at Texas A&M University, where he completed a master's degree; after more than
twenty years as a counselor at the vocational technical school in Monroe, Hil retired and
returned to his roots of crafting from wood; and
WHEREAS, in 1970, Hil Lytle built his first violin with the help of Foxfire books;
he improved his skills under the tutelage of Doc Savage of Monroe and became a specialist
in producing violins with exceptionally beautiful tones by using a "tap-toning" technique he
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developed; Hil has built more than nine hundred musical instruments, including guitars,
Dobros, which are resonator guitars, mandolins, banjos, violas, cellos, and violins; and
WHEREAS, Hil Lytle is a featured artist at the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View,
Arkansas, where he has demonstrated his skills as a master craftsman and has taught
apprentice builders; Hil helped establish the Music Roots Program, to which he has donated
more than four hundred instruments; at the Ozark Folk Center, Hil Lytle performed his
composition, Geriatric Blues, which he plays on a harmonica and wash tub bass; and
WHEREAS, of the seven hundred sixty-four violins Hil has built, most have been
given to young musicians who could not otherwise have afforded to purchase them; Hil is
proud to remember where every violin he built was sent and is even more passionate about
passing on his knowledge to the next generation of luthiers, many of whom he already has
helped to build their own fiddles; Hilton Lytle merits a special measure of commendation
upon his 2018 induction into the Louisiana Folklife Center Hall of Master Folk Artists.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commend Hilton "Hil" Lytle upon his 2018 induction
into the Louisiana Folklife Center Hall of Master Folk Artists; does hereby congratulate him
for his artistic excellence and generous, giving spirit; and does hereby extend to him every
good wish for continued success, prosperity, and happiness in the future.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to Hilton Lytle.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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