Edwin Carleton Baum, Jr.

Edwin Carleton Baum, Jr., 70, died on January 7, 2024, in Covington, Louisiana surrounded by his loving family.

Ed was born in Opelika, Alabama to Edwin Carleton Baum, Sr., and Mary Ann McDonald Baum. During Ed’s early life, his father’s work as a chemical engineer in the space industry took the family to Los Angeles, California; Cambridge, England and Cape Canaveral, Florida. When Ed was 9, the family settled in Huntsville, Alabama, where he attended Whitesburg Elementary and Junior High. Ed graduated from Huntsville High School, where he created many lifelong friendships.

After earning a degree in Building Science from Auburn University, Ed began a career in construction that took him to Katy, Texas, Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama, Washington, DC, Boston, and New York City. Ed worked on many major commercial construction projects, most recently for Tishman/AECOM. In December 2023, Ed moved to Covington to be near his family.

Ed pursued high-energy sports throughout his life – football, wrestling, water and downhill skiing, cycling, hockey and sailing. During the many years that he lived in New York, he kept a sailboat, “Sweet Dreams,” docked at Port Washington on Long Island. Ed also loved travel and he thrived on the energy of big cities. He enjoyed playing the guitar with friends and he was an avid music fan. After his parents and sisters moved to Louisiana in 1978, he visited the area frequently and was never happier than when exploring New Orleans and the Mandeville lakefront. But his greatest passion was his devotion to his family and his friends.

Ed was predeceased by his parents, grandparents Morris Carleton Baum, Willa Elizabeth Jones Baum, Raymond James McDonald, and Elizabeth Simpson McDonald; and brother-in-law Donald Leo Terrell.

Survivors include sisters Beverly Baum Beech and Sandra Baum Terrell; nephew Beau Bradley Terrell (Ashley Watts); Beau’s daughter, Ryleigh Green Terrell; niece Kate Elizabeth Terrell (Adrian Paruas); and many cousins and other relatives originating from Birmingham, Alabama.

Ed will be interred next to his parents and close to many other relatives at a graveside service on February 10, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. at Oak Hill Cemetery, 1120 19 th Street, N., Birmingham, Alabama.