Lyons began his architectural career in 1888, in the office of Pittsburgh architect Solomon Munsch. In 1891 he went to Fairmont to manage a branch office for the firm,[3] now Munsch & Huemme. In 1894 this was expanded to a partnership, Munsch, Huemme & Lyons, with offices in Pittsburgh and Fairmont. The firm became known as S. Munsch & Company upon Huemme's departure. After Munsch's death in 1898,[4] Lyons established his own office in Fairmont.
Lyons quickly grew to become one of the most prominent architects in northeast West Virginia. In 1904, he established a branch office at Elkins, a small city then undergoing rapid growth. He was also, around 1902, associated with John C. Tibbets as Lyons & Tibbets. He practiced until the 1930s, but by then he lost prominence to other architects, including R. A. Gillis, Jones & Nuzum, and Coy H. Snider.
After designing many grand homes, buildings and schools in Fairmont and North Central West Virginia, Lyons relocated to Pittsburgh in 1933 and formed a partnership with J. Hubert Wagner to establish a river barge transport company known as Lyons River Transportation. As it prospered, he traded his drafting table and t-squares for a new career as a riverboat captain. The flagship was the "Katie Lyons," a 532-ton sternwheeler. On March 16, 1942, a tragic accident claimed his life. The "Katie Lyons" was travelling to Point Pleasant, WV on the Ohio River, which was nearly at flood stage. The boat, caught by swift current and hampered by heavy fog, smashed sideways into one of the piers of the railroad bridge between Benwood, WV and Bellaire, Ohio. The boat sank rapidly. Captain Lyons, the pilot and second engineer were trapped inside the pilot house. However, 14 members of the crew made it to shore. Nearly a week later, his body was recovered. Lyons, his wife Katherine, and their daughter Beatrice are all buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Fairmont.
Legacy
At least two buildings designed by Lyons have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and several more contribute or did contribute to listed historic districts. In 2013, local historian Dr. M. Raymond Alvarez called Lyons "the primary architect, literally, of Fairmont’s transition from a sleepy county seat to a bustling commercial center".[2]
