26

~'? HTo ~ - ~D\N:bf D DATE OF BIRTH ...hJ L '-\' 14 , \ t2, '5S- NAHE ' DATE OF DEATH PLACE OF PRACTICE . ·TYPE OF PRACTICE FIRHS ASSOCIATED WITH ~ indicates .NATERIAL AVAILABLE · UNDER) BUILDINGS -,::: archite~t other ~'tvu.ct. i &;.Q&-. · ,6 ID@ ~b f'H lc.b ~ o f zSbL..1 ~L.6-1<.s -te/66:9 fe..D ~ v,c:.., rv-1-r~ [I BIOGRAPHICAL R.E CORD. nmand of Cyrus Wheeler. alt Lake City for one year, ved to what is now Layton, l in 1858 t he parents mpved father died in 1877, and the ), 1896. To our subject has ildren by this marriage, nine iving. They are: Alice A., Whitesides; Mary E., now ides; Lucy I., now the wife Wzabeth I., now Mrs. J. G. iving in Syracuse; MargaJohn Forbes, and later died; 1 Syracuse; Charles T., livttie M., Phillip A., who died ; Wilford E ., died at the age •ears; William E., at home, died when two years of age. the little daughter of Mrs. ·et E ., who is being raised by he was just past three weeks r mother's death. ed on his present place in nty acres of well improved , acres in Syracuse. He has farming business, but is also 1 outside concerns, being a )avis & V\T eber Canal Comested in the creamery busiterested in the Co-operative d in the .Kaysville Bank. nnett is a Democrat, but has ::tively in the work of that 1is time outside of his busi;ork. He was baptized iii.to at Nauvoo when but a child has ever since ]?een a loyal er of that faith. His family this Church, his son, ·John '. d to serve on a mission in 1897, and remaining in that \fr. Bennett is a High Priest 1ctive in its work at home. e Missouri river in 1863 and emigrants to Utah, and in :i to assist in getting emi! seat of the Indian troubles, imhigh for that purpose. DWARD T. ASHTON, Bishop of the Twenty-fourth Ward of Salt Lake Stake of Zion. Utah has been largely built up from a wild and undeveloped country during the early days of settlement, inhabited only by the savage red men and wild animals that roved at will through the valleys, hills and mountains, by the pioneers and their sons, and the splendid record that they have made along the lines of civilization and advancement is a tribute to their energy and perseverance. As one of the State's native sons, who has taken part in her onward march of civilization, and who has been alive to every enterprise and issue for her advancement, Bishop Edward T. Ashton is deserving of speciaf mention. Our subject was born in Salt Lake City, July 14, 1855. His father , Edward Ashton, a native of Monmouthshire, \'\Tales, was born in 1820. He was a shoemaker by trade, which he followed in his native country. He became a member of the Mormon Church in 1849 and emigrated to America two years later, crossing the plains to Utah in a company under command of Captain Dan Jones. Upon his arrival in this City, he located in the western part, which was at that time mostly under water. He became interested with a number of others in reclaiming this land, in which he was very successful, and is still living near his son, in the enjoyment of good health. His wife was Jane Treharne, also a native of Wales. She died in this city, leaving a family of seven children-Edward T., Jedediah W., Brigham W ., whose sk.etch appears elsewhere in this work; Elizabeth Ann , Sarah Jane, since deceased; Emily, and George S. Bishop Ashton was the oldest of the family and grew up in the Fifteenth vVard, receiving his education in the common schools of the city, and becoming apprenticed at the age of sixteen to Morris & Evans, stone and brick contractoq, and after the completion of his apprenticeship was employed for some time by that firm, by whom he was held in high esteem, he being presented by them with a handsomely engraved silver watch in recognition of his efficient services. He began the general contracting business for himself m 1881 and· continued alone until 1892; • (::. --· when he took hi nership , and the Ashton Brothers ing work they de ing . and monum nished the mater ures of this cit)' President of the pany, successors building stone w buildings for w building materia News building a in course of con one of the origi Ashton Fire Bri On April 4, 1l to Miss Effie Mc dren-Edward 1' Elias C., connect, l\.farvin 0 ., Ray Lowell S., who married, in 1884 ter of Henry P . .bore him seven M., Elmer T., J( Bishop Ashtor up the western i: the Twenty-fom few others, he p South and Seve the Franklin su have erected for is also interestec the West Side J\ ful enterprise of of the State N-0 had general cha edifice. He has trical plants for and has built th and the Jordan : ride, Colorado, a tect he has prov< in his ideas. During his ht and attention tc Mormon Churcl BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. when he took his brother, George S., into part- . nership, and the firm has since been known as Ashton Brothers. In addition to their contracting work they deal in all kinds of stone for building . and monumental purposes, and have furnished the material for many of the large structures of this city. In 1899 our subject became President of the Ashton, White Skillikorn Company, successors to Watson Brothers, the largest building stone works in the State. Among other buildings for which they have furnished the _building material may be mention the Deseret N ews building and the Catholic Cathedral, now in course of construction. Mr. Ashton was also one of the originators and incorporators of the Ashton Fire Brick and Tiling Company. On April 4 , 1878, Bishop Ashton was married to Miss Effie Morris, by whom he has seven children-Edward M., with the Zion's Savings Bank; Elias C., connected with the Fire Brick Company; Marvin 0 ., Raymond J. , Effie M., Jane L. and Lowell S ., who died in infancy. He was again married, in 1884, to Miss Cora Lindsay, daughter of Henry P. Lindsay of this city, who also bore him seven children-Cora . L., Ina J ., Amy M., Elmer T ., Jed and Eva. Bishop Ashton .has been very active in building up the western portion of the city, and especially the Twenty-fourth Ward. In company with a few others, he purchased a vacant block on First South and Seventh West in 1900, and laid out the Franklin subdivision, on which block they have erected forty substantial brick houses. He is also interested in the Elias Morris Company, the West Side Mercantile Association, a successful enterprise of that Ward. He drew the plans of the State Normal School at Cedar City, and had general charge of the construction of that edifice. He has also erected many of the electrical plants for the Telluride Power Company, and has built the plants at the Bi.g Cottonwood and the Jordan Narrows; Logan ; Provo; Tellu. ride, Colorado, and Butte, Montana. As an architect he has proved very successful, and is original in his ideas. During his busy life he has given much time and attention to furthering t~e interests of the Mormon Church, and has passed through many l 391 of the offices of the Priesthood. He was ordained an Elder in 1875, and became a member of the Second Quorum of Seventies in 1885, subsequently becoming one of the Seven Presidents of that Quorum; In 1891 he went to Great Britain on a mission for the Church, and for thirteen months presided over the Welsh Mission. He was ordained a High Priest and set apart as Bishop of the Twenty-fourth Ward in 1897, by President George Q. Cannon, and has all his life been. prominent in the work of the Young Men's Associations and in Sunday School work. His two oldest sons have also served on missions to Colorado and Germany. The success to which the Bishop has aUained has been won through his own unaided efforts, and he is justly entitled to the place which he occupies in the ranks of the business men of the city and State. [I DMUND WEBB has long been one of Kaysville's honored and respected citizens. He has assisted in no small de. gree in building up and developing the " commercial and agricultural interests of Davis county, and by his straightforward business principles and fair and honor:ible treatment of his fellow men he has won the respect. of the entire community. Edmund Webb was born in Linton, Cambridgeshire, England, July 26, ·1822, and is the son of Robert and Ann (Empelton) Webb, both natives of England, the father being born in Ickelton, · Cambridgeshire, and the mother in Linton. There were nine children in this family, our subject being the only one to join the Mormon Church or migrate to this country. He was baptized in 1852 by Pres. Bawed, and in the following year took passage at Liverpool for America . on board the sailing vessel Golconda, landing in New Orleans, and going from there by river to Keokuk, Iowa,· from where he went to Winter . ·Quarters, and crossed the great Americ·an plains, arriving in Salt Lake City on September 19, 1853. He remained in the city that winter, and spent the following summer on the Jordan river, going to Kaysville in 1854, but he did not ·remain there 2 10 uw naar UTAH .r..NetWIW ,- OlfflACTOIAND UmrJ'U.-, 1 ABATE Tu BIJlDER ~ DEAD Now Mil tn'j STA1 IA-4 T. Aall.... Sall Lake Naen., a..di . . . . . Dia Alw ......... . _ _ f-.1 • .... u •• n.-..,. -'• • •n• ... I! II O fff . . . . . ,•• • lliltt d•r r tlit,.. , .. , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . , . ,.1 •. f M · - 1111 . . . . , . . . . . 111 ... . UI a ...... t 2111 A a lU•• lla4 . . . . ............. .........,... ............... ,.,................. ...... ,...... ......., ............ G'- ..._ __ , .._..L ...... 1a •t• ~ 111 .... • H11 . . rt, •It •oa.t lilt' . . . .,. - - . . . ""' ~ ........... !ll•na . . . . . . . . . . . . . l er 4•• ft Wllikll \a .-... ao4 ...... . . ••N_,, ....... ~ N.._ 1. . . . . . • - •. . . . . . , tll • ..... •••• . . . . ,...... I a• ...... . At!':::> H i=o J __0~F---o-~_ -. ·- - - - - - - NAME DATE OF BIRTH DATE OF DEATH PLACE OF PRACTICE -TYPE OF PRACTICE archite~t other FIRHS ASSOCIATED WITH ( -~ indicates MATERIAL AVAILABLE UNDER) BUILDINGS t;~)JC:~ 1 ~h. .'? I: lh..bt ~-H, i .., ..,* wl ~- \/Ju,+ I \90D, PIIIM\.~MJ.w. 40 ·~ - ~ 6fR. \<=fO~ . BP , \l 33"1 736 IMPROVEMENT ERA head"? ,\nd again, "The soul of Go<l delights in the songs of the heart"? Second, in adc\ition to song-prayer, in our prescribed public worship, is vl'rhal-prayer, din:ct conmmnion with God, by won! of 111011th; expressions of praise and reverence and gratitude; a making known of needs, of hopes, of the trials of strnggling faith, of longings for wider knowledge of trnth, the lnmgcring and thirsting after rig-htcousuess, the 1ksirc to he filled-the lll'artfclt aspiration for 11nin11 wilh Goel. For what is prayer, till' only prayer worth while, lmt the fnfinitc in man strnggling outwant to liml ( ;O(]'s lnlinill', and staml u11iled wilh that? What is prayer but the truth in man,-man's truth-seeking, ahsolnte truth-G01l's truth? \Vhat is prayer, but the relative aml very limited righteousness of man seeking the righteousness of Go1l? \Vhat is prayer hut the little ~trength in man seeking to supplement that strength-which hut reveals man's w~akn~ss,-by 11nion with God's strrngth, that man may he adequate tor l11s duty? Such is prayer. Its effort and its mission is to invoke the felt neecl all(\ felt presence of the I nfinitc, leading to realiz:-,1 acceptance with Go<l-thc crownin••· o-lory am! the cud of worship. ::, "' . t I1c pn 11· Third, our preachments; the discourse, hy wlm:h J 1c tl'acher-mark, not "prcacher"-sed<s to lead his people, hy cxpositi,111 of truth, hy contemplation of God, au(! man's relationship {ll him, an1\ man's dnty; man's need, a11cl (;otl's love; aJI this. aml 1m1d1 mnre, is h11t a 111cans of tlireding man's tho11ght h• the awed nf the felt presc11ce of the Infinite. Fourth, anrl perhaps grcatc~t of all, the use of the symbols <:f the g-ospel as a means of 111aki11g felt the presence of, and mans real union with the Infinite. To this cm! is used the holy Sacrament, Eucharist, or Lont's Supper; expressive of fellowship with Go:I, arnl hence union with the Tnfinite. That Eucharist is symbol of God's love for rnan. Tt is to remind us that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son as a sacrifice, that whosoever bclicveth on him sho11ld not perish, bnt have everlastino· life. Infinite love, compassion, mercy in this. That Euch1rist is symbol of an infinite atonement, in that it is compL k anti 1wrfect 11111kr till' aL;ceptecl rnntlitions '.if its applicatton, -olil·dience to the g·ospl'i. I know of 11otln11g· else that so invokes the frlt p1Tsem·c of the Tnfinite; that so aclmowle1lgcs the need of that Jlrl'Sl'llCe in 111a11's lifr anti thinking; o~· that. SO rerfcctly witrn:sses that man seeks and accepts that 11111011 with God, which is the completion alHl perfection of all worship. Thus are almn<lant means provided in our public worship, in the Church of Jesus Christ, for invoking- the felt presence of Go(l in order that the spirit of worship may find free course and he rna(k availahlc to the masses of the people. \Vhile solemn g-roves, the mmmlain 's g-ranclcnr, the ocean's vastness, the cathc- TII E EU:VENTII WARD CHAPEL, ENSIGN STAKE The Fll'\'cnth wanl ch:1pcl is locakd at No. Ul 10th East St., Salt Lake l·i1y, aud was co11qilcted Fehrnary I, 1912, :\shtpp llwihtrs an:h1tc·d,;. it w;Ls clc,lkatc,I l\larch 18, 1914. It is lrnilt of hrirk au,I concrete an,I cost $.~8,305. The seating capacity is six hun,lrcd. There arc liftccn rooms, an<l three extra rooms for the janitor. An ;mmscmcnt hall is connected and huill in the rear of the chapel. The land mcsaurcs five by ten rods, an,\ the l,uiltling occupies all the gronnd, except a front lawn and a driveway round the building. !11 ron11ectio11 with the amusement hall is a spacious stage properly equipped with electric lights. ' clral and temple fanes and altars, suggest the presence of the Infinite, and awaken the impulse to worship, they do not stand alone i1~ that. Got! has provided seemingly humbler, hnt yet more direct, ancl, may I say it? more powerful mca11s of inspiring const'inusncss of the same thing, in the prescrihe1l worship of his t'lmrrh, thnngh rnrnlncktl in the ln1mhlest chapel, than in these seemingly more iH1posing· nwans that speak to the spirit in man. It is for Lhe worsliipn to look heynrnl the means lo the end to he ad1ieved; rerne111heri11g· that in worship, as in all things else, the letter alone killeth, bnt the spirit, unite(! with the letter, giveth life. "The hour cometh," said Tesns lo the woman at the well of Samaria, ·'when ye shall ncithe,~ in thi~ n1Ci1111tain nor yet at Jernsalcm worship the Father. l111t the hom cometh. anrl now is, wh,·n the trne worshipers shall worship the Fatl1~r in spirit and in lnith; for till' Father scekcth s11ch to worship him." IMPROVEMENT ERA Vor.. XVII MAY, 1914 No. 7 Loud Laughter a Sin PROF. N, L, NELSON, OF TUE WEDER ACADEMY, "Therefore, cease from 1111 yonr light speeches; from all faughter; from all your Justfnl desires; from all your pride and light mindedness, and from ;111 your wicked doings. * * * Cast away your idle thoughts and your excess of laughter for from you. * * * do these things with thanksgiving, _with cheerful hearts anti conntenancc~; nut with 11111.:h laughter, fur thi§ is sin, lout with :1 glad hc:1rt am] a chcerfol cu11111c11a11ce."--lluc. and Cov., !:!!:!:121, 69; S!J:15. - It is now forty years since I first read these passages an<i wondei·ed that the Lord should condemn so inrwcent and, to me, so aclmiralilc a thing as hearty laughter. I am afraid that as a boy the meaning of ''glad heart ancl cheerful cotmknancc," which the Loni offers as a substitute, did not strike my attention, and cert,1inly no one ever pointed it out to me. T fear also L!1at, hy !hl· law of contrast, my mind jumped to the opposite extreme; inter-· preling- as pleasing to hc.1Vl'II lhc g-ron11i11g ht·an and the tun~. drooping c01111Le11a11cc-likc that of old Brother l\foo<ly and old Sister Gloom who, although they were among the first to accept "Mom1011ism," failed to slough and leave behind them in the old country the sour and solemn shams of sectarianism. As a consequence, the years from twelve to eighteen, which mark the hoodlum epoch in my can·cr, were yl'ars of rehcllion :mcl tlcfiam:c. 1 hail not read l\1i11011's "L' AJl1·g"ro," lint had it l'11111c within my kc11 1 I should certainly lmvc approved this stanza: MAJOR J. H. GILBERT Y~rk · ti Ii t dilion of the Hook of Mormon. The principal fOnl;l?Ols1tor ol n Nie -in 1803, nml died in Palmyra, ll e was horn 111 ~•c ,monl, cw ' 10 II s The 1,hoto was 26 1895 aged 9' years, mon 1 • E' N Y J . .,. al1}tm9rly • s' "Edit;rs' Table" in this trnmber of the 'IIA, taken in 11 s st year. ee , "Haste thee, 11y11111h, :ind bring with lhcc Jest and youthful Jolity, Imps and cranks nil([ wanl'on wiles, Nods and !Jecks and wrealht'1I smiles, Sport that wrinkled care derides, Laughter holding both his sides." • • • As it was, the hero of that silly epoch, the incarnation of my el!rum th£ desk of ~ ALLEN D. ROBERTS cc 1ro9) --········------ tJ ~ vt1 5-Jit!Dit f m11 //'33, 5lC X() 5 . 1, p;: ~-~.-~ Sq r1.J I l-'1 cu1u!/.5fPI/IJM1 ~ {J,&f F /M27 ~ o?f/ jJ~-:t( t-.._ 1 #;;r 1oJY 337 bs .2~wJ ~ ~ s- u &. 7 a_ s:o . ~~~ ~- w ~~ (> > <fV"1.J , cnJ ~~ ,(. ~ ~~ . , S,..;->-~~ ~~ ~r v ~~ ~~ {~ ~ -P-~) ,9°8' <ZJJ ~ F)~-~~' deaths, so the house is one of the few of this vintage on Capitol Hill that has had just two owners in its history. George remodeled the home we now live in (70 West Zane) in 1938-9, converting it from a three-room bungalow and adding upper story, living room, back porch area, for his daughter and son-in-law, Lincoln and Emma Hanks; they lived there until 1957. The Ashtons had (and still have) cabin property in Little Cottonwood, and George loved to spend time in the canyon and to go on walks and hikes with his family there. He built his own cabin and developed the Wasatch Resort sites in the canyon on property he purchased from the LDS Church. George died in 1949. The informal slogan of Ashton Brothers Construction was, "We build homes, not just houses." They prided themselves on working closely with homeowners on design and financing of the homes. As to the Capitol Hill Ward building, Paul understood that during the latest remodel, they drilled through cement in the foundation and hit stone. This was because George learned from his father to set footings of cobblestone, then layer stones on top (or later on, cement, when it became more readily available.) He typically left no open space in his exterior walls (which may, I imagine, account for some of the added difficulties encountered in the Capitol Hill Ward remodel.) George would hand-pick stone from the mountains for his projects and have the masons then cut it. (As to a couple of unrelated leads for articles which Paul suggested as possibilities: - He believes that the pink house on North Main Street, north of 300 North, abutting the old Noall home on Wall Street from the rear, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Urban legend? -The old rock house at the end of Columbus was one of the very early homes, "one of the original ones," built there because of the spring located on the property. There used to be no road leading there, just a trail. - Ifwe want to break into Ensign Downs with an article sometime, the first home built there is the one on the southwest comer of East Capitol and Edgecombe, by Em and Harriet Capel (Paul thinks their son Neal still lives in southern Utah somewhere.) Dave Martin of overhead garage door fame lived there for a number of years, and several of the infamous "My advertising people tell me I'm a little stiff" and "Tell them Dave Martin sent you" ads were filmed in the driveway. I'd be happy to do a little research on this one if you think it might be a possibility- let me know. Notes from conversation with Paul A. Hanks (ca. 2001) regarding George Ashton, his grandfather. George designed and built his own homes. With his brother Edward, developed the whole tract; built the homes in the area east of Liberty Park. George lived there one winter, but found it to be "too far out," no snow removal service in those days. Some of the homes he built on Capitol Hill include 406 Wall Street (northeast comer of Wall and 400 North (currently Bruce Clayton home), moved his family into it. With his brother Ed also bui1t Rogers and Noall homes on Wall St. (the old Noall home is the one on the west side of Wall with wrought iron fence, next to Roger Crandall, so about 415 No. Wall.) These were probably built in the mid-teens to early 20s. He also built the home on the east side of Wall Street where Bob and Rebecca Sykes used to live {same block, two or three houses south of the condos and vacant lot.) Ben Bowring and his family lived there in the old days {counselor to Lincoln Hanks in the Salt Lake Stake presidency; later, I think, president of the LOS Los Angeles Temple, mission president someplace.). With Ed (who died in 1925), and with the Walkers and Skillicoms, George helped form the Utah Consolidated Granite Company, a consortium of companies formed to provide granite, originally for the State Capitol, later for other projects. They quarried in Little Cottonwood Canyon, near the current LOS vaults. The last granite project in which George participated was the This is the Place Monument; they also provided granite for the LDS Church Office Building at 47 East South Temple, and quarried marble for the Park Building at the U and pink granite for the Mormon Battalion Monument on the Capitol grounds. George built the Capitol Hill Ward chapel after the design of another smaller chapel he had built in Las Vegas. He installed the pipe organ in the building the years after it was completed, because they still had the pipe organ from the McCune mansion carriage house where the ward met earlier. George also built a couple of houses on Hillside (his sister Cora lived in one of these), favoring red-brick construction with rounded windows and rounded interior archways. This typical design can also be seen in the homes he built at DeSoto and 500 North {northwest comer - his sister Aileen lived in this one for many years) and at 554 DeSoto (east side of DeSoto up the street a bit - his daughter and son-in-law Lucille and Harries LJoyd, Earl Lloyd's parents, lived here for many years; Earl's sister Carolee Dayton and husband Brent now live there); and west across the street on DeSoto (where George's sister Leah and her husband George lived for many years they were Glen LJoyd's parents.) The fireplace design and set-up is also similar in these houses. George also built the current Paul and Jean Hanks home, 45 East 500 North, as a speculative venture, for re-sale; because of the Depression it didn't sell, so he eventually sold it to his cousin (I think - not sure of the family relationship, better check with Paul Hanks) and his wife, George and Alice Ashton. Paul and Jean bought the home from George and Alice's family after their