Thomas William Ludlow "Lud" Ashley (January 11, 1923 – June 15, 2010) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

businessman and politician of the Democratic Party. He served as a

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

from 1955 to 1981.

Early life and education

Ashley was born on January 11, 1923, in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...

, and raised in the Old West End. He was the son of Mary Alida Gouverneur (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Ludlow) Ashley and William Meredith Ashley, who owned a small steel manufacturing firm. His older brother William was killed in May 1944, at age 22, when his Army bomber exploded during a training mission over Massachusetts. Ashley attended

Maumee Valley Country Day School Maumee Valley Country Day School (or MVCDS, Maumee Valley or MV) is an independent, co-ed, and non-religious private school in Toledo, Ohio. The school was founded in 1842 as an all-girls finishing school in Western New York and moved to Toledo ...

and graduated from the

Kent School Kent School is a private college-preparatory day and boarding school in Kent, Connecticut. Founded in 1906, it is affiliated with the Episcopal Church. It educates around 520 boys and girls in grades 9–12. Kent was one of the first schools ...

in Connecticut in 1942. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a corporal in the Pacific Theater of Operations. After the war, Ashley attended

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, where he graduated in 1948. At Yale, he was a member of the secret society

Skull and Bones Skull and Bones (also known as The Order, Order 322 or The Brotherhood of Death) is an undergraduate senior Secret society#Colleges and universities, secret student society at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. The oldest senior-class ...

along with future U.S. President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

. After graduating from Yale, Ashley worked with the Toledo Publicity and Efficiency Commission. Encouraged by

Michael DiSalle Michael Vincent DiSalle (January 6, 1908September 16, 1981) was the 60th governor of Ohio, serving from 1959 to 1963. A Democrat, he was a member of the Toledo City Council and served as the 46th mayor of Toledo from 1948 to 1950. Early lif ...

, then

mayor of Toledo This is a list of mayors of Toledo, Ohio. References External links * {{toledo Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee ...

and later

governor of Ohio A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

, he began studying law through night classes at the

University of Toledo College of Law The University of Toledo College of Law is the law school at the University of Toledo, and is located on the university's main campus in a residential neighborhood in western Toledo, Ohio. The school is fully accredited by the American Bar Associa ...

. He graduated from Ohio State University College of Law in 1951. He was admitted to the bar that year and began practicing law.

Career

Ashley joined the staff of

Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...

(RFE) in 1952. He served in Europe for RFE as the co-director of the press section and later the assistant director of special projects. He resigned from RFE on March 1, 1954, to run for Congress.

U.S. Congress

Ashley was elected to Congress in 1954, beating the incumbent

Frazier Reams Henry Frazier Reams Sr. (January 15, 1897 – September 15, 1971) was an American lawyer and politician of the United States Democratic Party from Toledo, Ohio. Reams served as a U.S. Congressman from Ohio from 1951 to 1955. Life and career ...

, an independent, by 4,000 votes in a three-way race. He served 13 terms in Congress and was chairman of the Select Committee on Energy (Ad Hoc) from 1977 to 1979 and of the

United States House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries The United States House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries is a defunct United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives. The Committee on Merchant Marine and Fish ...

from 1979 to 1981. In 1961, Ashley was one of six congressmen who voted to withdraw funding for the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 19 ...

. He helped pass the

1964 Civil Rights Act The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. It prohibits unequal application of voter registration requi ...

and was a proponent of anti-poverty and housing legislation. In 1980, Ashley lost in an upset to Republican challenger

Ed Weber Edward Ford Weber (July 26, 1931 – February 27, 2023) was an American politician from Ohio. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives as a Republican from 1981 to 1983. Early life and education Weber was born in Toledo ...

Later career

Ashley was a member of the

George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum The George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library and burial site of George H. W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States (1989–1993), and his wife Barbara Bush. Located on a site on the west campus of ...

board and served on many corporate boards, including

Fannie Mae The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a United States government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) and, since 1968, a publicly traded company. Founded in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the New ...

and

Freddie Mac The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), commonly known as Freddie Mac, is an American publicly traded, government-sponsored enterprise (GSE), headquartered in Tysons, Virginia.

Personal life

Ashley was twice married. He married Margaret Mary Sherman in 1956 and had a daughter but they separated and divorced quickly thereafter. He married Kathleen Lucey in 1967 at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Trenton, New Jersey. Kathleen, the daughter of Charley Lucey (editor of '' The Times Newspapers'' in Trenton), was a graduate of

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

and

Georgetown Law School Georgetown University Law Center is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment, with over ...

and the Washington editor for the United States

Savings and Loan A savings and loan association (S&L), or thrift institution, is a financial institution that specializes in accepting savings deposits and making mortgage and other loans. While the terms "S&L" and "thrift" are mainly used in the United States, ...

League. They had two children: * William Meredith Ashley, who married Monica Ann Manginello in 2008. * Mark Michael Ashley Kathleen Ashley died of heart failure at

George Washington University Hospital The George Washington University Hospital (GWUH) is a short-stay hospital in Washington, D.C. affiliated with the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Since 2022, the hospital has been wholly owned and operated ...

in 1997. Lud Ashley lived in

Leland, Michigan Leland ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Leelanau County, part of the northwestern Lower Peninsula of the state. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 4 ...

, until his death from

melanoma Melanoma is the most dangerous type of skin cancer; it develops from the melanin-producing cells known as melanocytes. It typically occurs in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye (uveal melanoma). In very rare case ...

at his home on June 15, 2010. After his death, George H. W. Bush said in a statement that he and

Barbara Bush Barbara Bush (; June 8, 1925 – April 17, 2018) was the first lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993, as the wife of the 41st president of the United States, George H. W. Bush. She was previously second lady of the United States fr ...

"mourn the loss of a very close friend" and said Ashley "might well have been my very best friend in life." Ashley was the great-great-grandson of

James Mitchell Ashley James Mitchell Ashley (November 14, 1824September 16, 1896) was an American politician and abolitionist. A member of the Republican Party, Ashley served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio during the American Civ ...

, who was a U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1859 to 1869, and was one of the main architects of the Thirteenth Amendment.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashley, Thomas 1923 births 2010 deaths United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War II Yale University alumni Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni University of Toledo alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Kent School alumni Politicians from Toledo, Ohio People from Leland, Michigan 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Maumee Valley Country Day School alumni Military personnel from Ohio Members of Skull and Bones Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Toledo, Ohio)