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'''William Matthew Lowe''', known as '''W. Matt Lowe''' (January 1, 1872 – March 4, 1955), was a [[business]]man and [[public official]] in  [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]], the seat of government of Webster Parish  in northwestern [[Louisiana]].  

'''William Matthew Lowe''', known as '''W. Matt Lowe''' (January 1, 1872 – March 4, 1955), was a [[business]]man and public official in  [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]], the seat of government of Webster Parish  in northwestern [[Louisiana]].  

During [[World War I]] and its aftermath, Lowe served two terms from 1916 to 1920 as [[mayor]] of Minden. A [[Democratic Party|Democrat]], Lowe was from 1940 to 1954 a member of the Webster Parish Police Jury, the parish governing commission equivalent to the county commission in other states.<ref>''Respect for the Past; Confidence in the Future: Webster Parish Centennial, 1871-1971'', Webster Parish Police Jury, 1971, pp. 16-17.</ref>

During [[World War I]] and its aftermath, Lowe served two terms from 1916 to 1920 as [[mayor]] of Minden. A [[Democratic Party|Democrat]], Lowe was from 1940 to 1954 a member of the Webster Parish Police Jury, the parish governing commission equivalent to the county commission in other states.<ref>''Respect for the Past; Confidence in the Future: Webster Parish Centennial, 1871-1971'', Webster Parish Police Jury, 1971, pp. 16-17.</ref>

==Biography==

==Biography==

Lowe was born in Louisiana, parish not available. His father was a native of [[North Carolina]]; his mother, from [[Georgia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mocavo.com/W-Matt-Lowe-B1872-Minden-Webster-Louisiana-1930-United-States-Census/13743578108735976368|title=W. Matt Lowe in the 1930 Census|publisher=mocavo.com|accessdate=March 13, 2015}}</ref> In June 1916, Lowe succeeded the three-term Abner Drake Turner (March 16, 1877 &ndash; December 25, 1953) as mayor. Though he had held the office for only six years from 1910 to 1916, Turner was at the time the longest serving mayor since 1868 and possibly since the founding of Minden in 1837.<ref>City of Minden, List of Mayors since 1868</ref> Turner graduated in 1889 from the Louisiana Industrial Institute, the forerunner of [[Louisiana Tech University]] in [[Ruston, Louisiana|Ruston]]. A major civic figure from a prominent family, Turner was a president of the former Bank of Webster and the Minden Building and Loan Association<ref name=mbl/> and served on the Webster Parish School Board and the Webster Parish Democratic Executive Committee, the ruling political force in the city. Turner died of a heart attack on [[Christmas Day]] 1953.<ref name=turnerobit>"Rites for A. D. Turner Held Saturday 3 p.m.", ''The Minden Press'', January 1, 1954, p. 1.</ref>

Lowe was born in Louisiana, parish not available; Webster Parish was created in 1871, just a few months before Lowe's birth. His father was a native of [[North Carolina]]; his mother, from [[Georgia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mocavo.com/W-Matt-Lowe-B1872-Minden-Webster-Louisiana-1930-United-States-Census/13743578108735976368|title=W. Matt Lowe in the 1930 Census|publisher=mocavo.com|accessdate=March 13, 2015}}</ref> In June 1916, Lowe succeeded the three-term Abner Drake Turner (March 16, 1877 &ndash; December 25, 1953) as mayor. Though he had held the office for only six years from 1910 to 1916, Turner was at the time the longest serving mayor since 1868 and possibly since the founding of Minden in 1837.<ref>City of Minden, List of Mayors since 1868</ref> Turner graduated in 1889 from the Louisiana Industrial Institute, the forerunner of [[Louisiana Tech University]] in [[Ruston, Louisiana|Ruston]]. A major civic figure from a prominent family, Turner was a president of the former Bank of Webster and the Minden Building and Loan Association<ref name=mbl/> and served on the Webster Parish School Board and the Webster Parish Democratic Executive Committee, the ruling political force in the city. Turner died of a heart attack on [[Christmas Day]] 1953.<ref name=turnerobit>"Rites for A. D. Turner Held Saturday 3 p.m.", ''The Minden Press'', January 1, 1954, p. 1.</ref>

   

   

During Mayor Lowe's first term of two years, the city in 1917 acquired its municipal generating station after a fire swept through the former Minden Lumber Company, the previous owner of the facility.<ref>"[[Connell Fort]] Dies Saturday Night at His Residence Here: Was Great Civic Worker and Builder of This City," ''Webster Signal-Tribune'', March 5, 1937, pp. 1, 6.</ref> Minden is one of some twenty municipalities in Louisiana in which residences and businesses still purchase their electricity from the city, with profits diverted to finance partially the costs of government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/execdiv/techasmt/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/005.htm|title=Government-Owned electric Utilities: Municipal Power Authorities and Electric Utilities54|publisher=dnr.louisiana.gov|accessdate=May 28, 2011}}</ref>

During Mayor Lowe's first term of two years, the city in 1917 acquired its municipal generating station after a fire swept through the former Minden Lumber Company, the previous owner of the facility.<ref>"[[Connell Fort]] Dies Saturday Night at His Residence Here: Was Great Civic Worker and Builder of This City," ''Webster Signal-Tribune'', March 5, 1937, pp. 1, 6.</ref> Minden is one of some twenty municipalities in Louisiana in which residences and businesses still purchase their electricity from the city, with profits diverted to finance partially the costs of government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dnr.louisiana.gov/sec/execdiv/techasmt/electricity/electric_vol1_1994/005.htm|title=Government-Owned electric Utilities: Municipal Power Authorities and Electric Utilities54|publisher=dnr.louisiana.gov|accessdate=May 28, 2011}}</ref>