Michael H. Newman

Michael Henry Newman

This is the story of Michael ‘Mike’ Henry Newman, a wonderful man that was loved and will be missed, cherished and fondly remembered for his castle and bakery.  Michael’s story starts on July 23, 1955, the oldest child of Henry and Rosiele ‘Rose’ Wiktorik Newman.  Mike was born in Bellville and died March 13, 2024, at the castle he built in Bellville.

He would spend the majority of his life in Bellville.  As a child, he was a member of the First Baptist Church, a Boy Scout member and he did things that a typical kid did growing up in the 60’s.  He was an honor graduate of the 1973 Bellville High School Class.  Shortly after graduation, he traveled abroad living in several places including Spain and Italy.  At this time, he met his future wife, Gabrielle McGrath.  In 1978, they were married in Gibraltar and then moved back to Bellville where their son was born.

In his earlier years, he was a stocker at Lockwood’s Grocery Store and later an electrician and manager at the Bellville Potato Chip Factory.  His heart yearned to do more, so in 1983 he opened Newman’s Bakery in a small location and as his business grew, he purchased the former Harry’s Superette building where his business continues.

His next dream was to build a castle (moat, drawbridge, chapel and all). With his creativity, he designed and built the majority of the castle himself, even learning how to weld. Building the castle was an ongoing project which lasted approximately ten years.  When things were finally in order, Mike moved into the castle in 2007.  The bakery was still in operation and he decided to give tours of the castle.  As the word spread, busloads of tourists would visit the bakery and castle daily. He felt another challenge and during this time he became a beekeeper and had hives at numerous locations, bottling thousands of jars of honey.

Mike was a giving person where many of his deeds were done under the radar.  He was a member of the Gideon’s organization. Part of his ministry were weekly visits to the county jail where he was able to interact with the inmates.

Mike also had a passion for sailing and spent many hours sailing his boat.  His sailing plans and dreams continued as he was hired to help sail a boat from France to Annapolis.  He also charter sailed around the Cape Horn of Africa and, his most recent trip last year, he was on a boat that sailed from Tahiti to Hawaii. He considered all of these sailing journeys a treat.

Loved ones that cleared the path for Mike are his father Henry O. Newman, grandparents Henry Oswell and Jennie Fisher Newman, and Joseph and Clara Pfeffer Wiktorik.

Loved ones that will miss him are his mother Rosiele Newman, a son, sister and brother-in-law Sherry and Brent Welty, nieces and nephews, Angela and Gunnar Kent, Ashley Welty and Chad and Amanda Welty.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to:

First Baptist Church of Bellville
504 E Strauss St.
Bellville, TX 77418

Good Hope Cemetery
c/o Bank of Brenham
501 S Austin St.
Brenham, TX 77833