Clifford Lindsay Ashton "crossed the bar" peacefully at St. Joseph's Villa on Tuesday, August 8, 2000, at the age of 91. He lived a full life centered around a remarkable law career, his friends and family who loved and respected him, and his beloved quarter horses.
He was born December 29, 1908, in Salt Lake City, the son of Edward Treharne and Cora Lindsay Ashton. He attended Salt Lake City schools and served an LDS mission to England before entering the University of Michigan, first as an undergraduate then as a law student, where he graduated with an LL.B and J.D. degree in 1937.
He married Myriel Cluff June 29, 1940; she preceded him in death in 1980. Together they raised six children: Janiel "Jael" (and Greg) Reusch of Fairfield, New Jersey; Edward "Ted" (and Kathy) Ashton; Julie (and Bill) Barrett; Coralie (and Bruce) Alder; Deborah Ashton, all of Salt Lake; and Anne (and Rich) Lowe of Littleton, Colorado.
Cliff led a remarkable life in the legal arena, beginning with his admission to the Salt Lake City Bar in 1936, when he became a partner in his own firm of McCullough & Ashton. He entered World War II service as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate Corps. While he was overseas, his wife, Myriel, successfully led his campaign for City Judge, a position he held from 1946 to 1948. His election victory earned him (and Myriel) a mention in Time Magazine and an offer from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for film rights, which were never finalized. In 1948, he joined the law firm of Van Cott, Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy, where his career spanned 43 years. During this time he represented clients as diverse as the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, Gossner's Cheese in Cache Valley, and the Ute and Navajo
Indians.
During his tenure at Van Cott, Bagley, he held multiple positions in the public and private sector including: Utah State Bar Commissioner, Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Special Prosecutor for the Salt Lake County Grand Jury, and member of Utah Bar Association. He was the recipient of numerous awards, most notably the Utah State Bar's Distinguished Service Award in 1975. He was a Director of the first seven-county Central Utah Water Conservancy District board from 1964 to 1980 and a member of the Citizens' Advisory Committee of Salt Lake City for Water and Sewer from 1980 to 1984. He also chaired the Ruth Eleanor and John Ernest Bamberger Memorial Foundation and continued on as a board member until just recently.
Cliff's children fondly remember a 1990 "Howl-o-Ween" Roast, when over 100 colleagues, friends, and relatives gathered at a downtown Salt Lake hotel to honor Cliff, who is regarded by many in his profession "as a foremost trial lawyer in Utah and in the West." His keen intelligence, courtroom antics, sidebar bantering, and quick thinking earned him the nickname "Silver Fox" at the University of Utah law school, where he was often referred to by his peers as a legal legend. One close friend and "roaster" referred to him as "irreverent, raucous, but the closest thing we'll ever have to Mark Twain." One of Cliff's fondest memories was a recent trip to his Alma Mater, the University of Michigan, with his close friend and colleague, Robert Anderson. (Thanks, Bob. It meant a lot to Dad.)
He maintained a strong, though arguably irreverent, respect for his heritage, which culminated in his two memoirs, "Seeds of Promise" and "In the Arena". A talented writer and historian, he was also asked by the U.S. Court to write an historical perspective of the U.S. Territorial and District Court Judges in Utah, which was published in 1988.
Following Myriel's death in 1980, Cliff moved to the Eagle Gate Apartments, and then to his final home at St. Joseph's Villa. He treasured his new friendships at St. Joseph's. In fact, he never fully recovered from the recent death of his dear friend, Ted, who along with Joe, helped Dad establish St. Joseph's first "happy hour." The family would like to thank everyone at St. Joseph's for their professionalism, dedication, sense of humor, patience, and special loving attention to Cliff.
Cliff loved his children, grandchildren, his horses, and his dear friends. He enjoyed having lunch at the Alta Club and joining his "Coffee Clutch" cronies at Molly's in Crossroads, as they did for years, to discuss and "solve" the world's problems. He will be remembered by his friends and family for his incredible, if not wry sense of humor, sharp wit, keen intelligence, and remarkable memory.
In addition to his six children, he is survived by 13 grandchildren and 12 great-grand-children, in whom he took great pride and deeply loved. He is also survived by his numerous nieces and nephews, and was especially close to his nephew Michael J. Eardley.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, August 12, at 12 noon at the Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park and Mortuary at 3401 Highland Drive. Friends and family are invited to call from 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to St Joseph's Villa or the charity of your choice.