John Nicholas Udall (July 23, 1913 – June 15, 2005), usually called Nick Udall, was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

from 1948 to 1952. He was a member of the Udall political family and was also a nephew of

Spencer W. Kimball Spencer Woolley Kimball (March 28, 1895 – November 5, 1985) was an American religious leader who was the twelfth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The grandson of early Latter-day Saint apostle Heber ...

, the 12th

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

Biography

Udall was born and raised in Arizona. His parents

John Hunt Udall John Hunt Udall (August 23, 1889 – March 3, 1959) was mayor of Phoenix, Arizona from 1936 to 1938. He was a member of the Udall political family. Biography The son of David King Udall and Ida Frances (Hunt) Udall, he was born and ra ...

and Ruth Kimball were in the same English literature class at the St. Joseph Stake Academy (now

Eastern Arizona College Eastern Arizona College (EAC), is a community college in Graham County, Arizona, United States. The main campus is in Thatcher, with satellite locations in Gila County and Greenlee County. It is the oldest community college in Arizona and the ...

), and when learning about playwright

Nicholas Udall Nicholas Udall (or Uvedale Udal, Woodall, or other variations) (1504 – 23 December 1556) was an English playwright, cleric, schoolmaster, the author of '' Ralph Roister Doister'', generally regarded as the first comedy written in the English ...

, they joked that if they ever got married, that they would name their son Nick, which they did. Udall attended

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

and the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

before enrolling in

The George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest law school in Washington, D.C. GW Law has an al ...

, graduating in 1943. After graduation, he returned home to Arizona, where he began his law practice. He followed in his father's footsteps, and served as mayor of Phoenix from 1948 to 1952. He served with then-City Councilman

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

. From 1952 to 1956 he served as judge of the

Maricopa County Maricopa County () is a county in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census the population was 4,420,568, or about 62% of the state's total, making it the fourth-most populous county in the United States and ...

Superior Court. Nick left the bench to return to private legal practice at Jennings, Strouss, Salmon & Trask in Phoenix, where he practiced law until retiring in 1992. Phoenix-Greenwood Memory Lawn Cemetery-John Nicolas Udall

Phoenix-Greenwood Memory Lawn Cemetery-John Nicolas Udall

A lifelong member of

, Nick served in various church positions, including service as a full-time missionary in the Eastern Central States

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

from 1934 to 1936, as

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Phoenix Third

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

from 1970 to 1975 ("the most satisfying calling that a worthy priesthood holder can have" because "he is continually helping people"), and as

Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...

of the Phoenix Arizona

Stake A stake is a large wooden or metal implement designed to be driven into the ground and may refer to: Tools * Archer's stake, a defensive stake carried by medieval longbowmen * Survey stakes, markers used by surveyors * Sudis (stake) (Latin for ...

from 1975 to 1991. Nick and his wife, Sybil Elizabeth Webb, are the parents of seven children. They are buried alongside each other in

Greenwood/Memory Lawn Mortuary & Cemetery Greenwood Memory Lawn Mortuary & Cemetery is the name of a cemetery located at 2300 West Van Buren Street in Phoenix, Arizona owned by Dignity Memorial. The cemetery, which resulted as a merger of two historical cemeteries, Greenwood Memorial Park ...

in Phoenix, Arizona. Following Sybil's death in 1998, Nick married Joan Romney in 2001. His autobiography, "The Wonder of It All," was published by FCP Publishing in 2006.

References

External links

Nick Udall's obituary
at the

Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations o ...

Udall's Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Udall, John Nicholas 20th-century American biographers 20th-century mayors of places in Arizona Mayors of Phoenix, Arizona Udall family Brigham Young University alumni University of Arizona alumni George Washington University Law School alumni Patriarchs (LDS Church) American Mormon missionaries in the United States American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 20th-century Mormon missionaries 1913 births 2005 deaths Latter Day Saints from Arizona Arizona Democrats

Biography

See also

References

External links