James W. Ashman (March 25, 1848 – March 28, 1912) was a 19th-century businessman who served two years on the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California, Board of Education. He was a member of the Los Angeles City Council from 1894 to 1898, where he championed the establishment of the city's first fire station composed of African-Americans. Ashman was born in England on March 25, 1848, and came to the United States in 1870, when he settled in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. He was a locomotive engineer for a dozen years with the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

, then moved to Los Angeles in 1884."Our Candidates for Public Offices," ''Los Angeles Herald,'' November 12, 1896,page 6
/ref> He was a founder of the Atlas Milling Company of that city and was later affiliated with the Keystone Milling Company. In 1897 he was president of the Los Angeles chapter of the

International Order of Odd Fellows The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a non-political, non-sectarian international fraternal order of Odd Fellowship. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Wildey in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Evolving from the Odd Fellows, Order ...

. A Democrat, Ashman served two years on the

Los Angeles Board of Education Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is a public school district in Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States count ...

and was elected to the City Council in 1894 for a two-year term, then was reelected in 1896. During his councilmanic years, he successfully urged that fruit and vegetable markets be inspected by the city health department. He also introduced a resolution that city employees be paid twice a month instead of once, to keep them "out of the hands of the money sharks." In 1895, according to the ''Los Angeles Herald'':

Councilman Ashman caused a mild sensation by moving that the strength of the fire department be increased by the addition of a company to be composed exclusively of
colored ''Colored'' (or ''coloured'') is a racial descriptor historically used in the United States during the Jim Crow era to refer to an African American. In many places, it may be considered a slur. Dictionary definitions The word ''colored'' wa ...
men. Ashman is a Democrat, and his motion caused Councilman rank StylesMunson, who is the Republican leader, to gasp with astonishment. Munson, however, proved equal to the occasion by moving that the resolution be referred to the board of fire commissioners.

The resolution recommended to the fire commissioners that "they arrange as soon as practicable for an

engine company Firefighting jargon includes a diverse lexicon of both common and idiosyncratic terms. One problem that exists in trying to create a list such as this is that much of the terminology used by a particular department is specifically defined in thei ...

to be composed of colored men," but in November 1898 the action had still not been accomplished so Ashton once again introduced a motion to the same effect, noting that "The colored people of our city are wholly without recognition in this important department of public service." It was adopted unanimously. Upon his retirement from the City Council it was announced that he had been appointed a police commissioner. Ashman was married to Elizabeth, who died in December, 1908. Their children were Mrs. Jesse W. Dutton and Bart Ashman."Funeral Notices," ''Los Angeles Herald,'' December 5, 1908, page 10
/ref> Ashman himself died in Los Angeles on March 28, 1912.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashman, James 1848 births 1912 deaths Businesspeople from California English emigrants to the United States Los Angeles City Council members California Democrats 19th-century American businesspeople Members of the Odd Fellows