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WILFRED G. ASHTON
Vol. 3, p. 1334

As state commissioner of labor, a position to which he was elected
in November, 1914, Wilfred G. ASHTON has the direction and charge of
matters which concern the people of Oklahoma as closely as those of
any other department of the public service. It is a strong man who
assumes such burdens as those incidental to the discharge of the
duties of this office, and one element of Mr. Ashton's strength is
his experience as assistant state commissioner for six years;
another, that he spent the early years of his life as a member of an
industrial trade. The present happy conditions in regard to the labor
question in Oklahoma may be largely accredited to his wise and
ceaseless labors.

Wilfred G. Ashton was born at Plymouth, Indiana, in 1880, and is a
son of John H. and Mary (KRUMENACHER) Ashton. His father, a native of
Pennsylvania, removed to Marshall County, Indiana, as a young man,
and there engaged in agricultural pursuits, in which he is still
interested, Mrs. Ashton also surviving. Although he has long been
influential in political matters, he has never sought office on his
own account. Wilfred G. Ashton was educated at Saint Michael's
Academy, Plymouth, Indiana, and as a youth learned the trade of
painter and decorator. Coming to Oklahoma City in 1905, he was
employed at his vocation until 1908, when he became assistant state
labor commissioner, under C. L. DAUGHERTY. In November, 1914, he was
elected on the democratic ticket as state labor commissioner, taking
office in January, 1915, for a term of four years, to succeed Mr.
Daugherty, who at that time became secretary of the Board of Public
Affairs.

As assistant state labor commissioner, Mr. Ashton prepared the
"Supplement to the Fifth Annual Report of the Department of Labor for
the State of Oklahoma on Employers' Liability and Workmen's
Compensation, December, 1912," and since he assumed his present
office his recommendations have been enacted into a law by the Fifth
Legislature, in 1915. He has been eminently successful in the
handling of strike troubles throughout the state, notably the strike
of the smeltermen at Collinsville, in 1913; and the strike of the oil
men at Tulsa and the oil fields of the state, involving from 1,200 to
1,500 men, in 1915. All of these troubles he adjusted not only to the
satisfaction of the employees but of the employers as well. As state
labor commissioner he has placed factory inspection on a broader
basis, by establishing safety committees in the various factories. As
a result of this work Oklahoma has the distinction of having the
first State Safety Council in this country, organized recently and
affiliated with the National Safety Council. Mr. Ashton is president
of the new council. He has raised the standard of the Free Employment
Bureau to a higher plane by extending the work to cover mechanics and
clerical help, whereby references are required in regard to the
ability and character of the applicants, thus securing for the
employer the kind of material which he desires; he has also extended
the work to the professional field, to the extent of securing
positions for school teachers, which has the endorsement of State
Superintendent of Instruction R. H. WILSON. In fact he has placed the
Free Employment Bureau on such a high standard that all classes
throughout the state are induced to make use of it all over the
state. Mr. Ashton is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order
of Elks, No. 417, of Oklahoma City.

In February, 1906, Mr. Ashton was married to Miss Eva SMITH,
daughter of D. C. Smith, of Plymouth, Indiana, a prominent and active
politician, who has been elected sheriff of his county on the
republican ticket in what is ordinarily a strong democratic locality.
Mr. and Mrs. Ashton have no children. Their pleasant home is located
at No. 3121 North McKinley Avenue.

Typed for OKGenWeb by Nelda Rowland, November 12, 1998.