Edith Evans Asbury
- October 30, 2008
- 98 years
About Edith Evans Asbury
Edith Evans Asbury, 98, American journalist (The New York Times), after long illness.
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Full Biography
|Edith Evans Asbury (née Snyder; June 30, 1910 – October 30, 2008) was an American journalist who spent nearly 30 years as a reporter with The New York Times.
Biography
Born Edith Florence Snyder on June 30, 1910, in New Boston, Ohio to Fletcher and Mary (née Lutz) Snyder. She was the eldest of 16 children. After a summer job at the Cincinnati Times-Star at age 19, she left Western College for Women with a passion for journalism that would last most of her life. She married Joe Evans when she was 20 and the couple moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, where she attended the University of Tennessee, receiving bachelor's and master's degrees in American history in 1932 and 1933 respectively. She took a job as a reporter with the Knoxville News Sentinel from 1933 to 1937.
In 1937, at the height of the Great Depression, she left Knoxville and her husband (whom she later divorced) and headed to Manhattan despite the lack of any pre-planned prospects for work and wired her editor that she was quitting her job. In New York, she found a sequence of jobs with the New York Post, the New York City Housing Authority, the Associated Press and the New York World-Telegram and Sun, where she served as assistant editor for women's news. While at the World-Telegram in 1952, Asbury was elected President of the New York Newspaper Women's Club.
She married journalist Herbert Asbury in 1945; the two divorced in 1958. It was the second marriage for both. Her husband was best known for his 1928 book The Gangs of New York, which was later adapted as a screenplay for the 2002 Martin Scorsese film. Her 1971 marriage to Times assistant managing editor Robert E. Garst ended with his death in 1980.
The New York Times
She accepted a position with The New York Times in 1952 with the proviso that she be assigned to the city room and not the women's department of the paper. Her first byline in the paper was a story from December 5, 1952, on a ceremony welcoming Saint Nicholas held in Westchester County, New York. Others among her earliest stories with the paper included items about holiday shopping on Fifth Avenue, a lost canary, and the Fifth Avenue Easter Parade.
More serious work followed, including a 1955 series on the problems of the elderly. She was one of several reporters sent by the Times in 1956 to write about desegregation in the South following the Supreme Court's 1954 decision Brown v. Board of Education, which was summarized in a special eight-page section published in March 1956 and made available to the public as a reprint. Her reporting in 1958 about an unwritten ban on counseling and prescription of birth control in New York City hospitals was credited with helping overturn the ban.
Asbury was known for her tenacity; New York City Mayor John Lindsay was said to have been so angered by her that he smashed his telephone after slamming down the receiver. Even after her retirement from the Times in 1981, Asbury continued to write for the paper, including items about travel to Europe and China. Into her 90s, Asbury would call reporters at the paper, offering suggestions on potential stories that had been overlooked.
Awards and recognition
The Women's Press Club of New York City gave Asbury its Newspaper Award of Merit for "outstanding achievement in the field of journalism of benefit to the City of New York in 1964". Asbury was recognized in 1967 with the Page One Award from the Newspaper Guild of New York for a series about a family's successful battle to adopt a blind foster child.
Asbury was also one of the first women allowed to join the Inner Circle Show in 1973.[citation needed]
Death and legacy
Her health had deteriorated for two years, and she died at her home in Greenwich Village in Manhattan at age 98, on October 30, 2008. A specific cause of death was not disclosed. Asbury's papers and correspondence are available at the La Guardia and Wagner Archives.
Content from Wikipedia — licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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Articles & News
- "Edith Evans Asbury, 98, Veteran Times Reporter, Is Dead"nytimes.com
- "NEWSPAPER WOMEN ELECT; Mrs. Edith Evans Asbury of The World-Telegram Is President"nytimes.com
Reported coverage of Edith Evans Asbury; each link opens the original article on the publisher's own site.
Books & Media
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Sources
- Wikipedia
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Evans_Asbury
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sep 26, 2026
- View article
- Sep 26, 2026
Trivia & Knowledge· 15 questions
Questions drawn from Edith Evans Asbury's archived record and the sources above.
1.What was the birth name of Edith Evans Asbury?
- A.Edith Mary Snyder
- B.Edith Florence Snydercorrect
- C.Edith Lutz Snyder
- D.Edith New Boston Snyder
Edith Evans Asbury was born Edith Florence Snyder on June 30, 1910.
Source: Biography section
2.Which university did Edith Evans Asbury attend to earn her master's degree in American history?
- A.University of Tennesseecorrect
- B.Western College for Women
- C.New York University
- D.Columbia University
Edith Evans Asbury attended the University of Tennessee and received a master's degree in American history in 1933.
Source: Biography section
3.Which position did Edith Evans Asbury hold at the New York World-Telegram and Sun?
- A.Editor-in-chief
- B.Sports correspondent
- C.Assistant editor for women's newscorrect
- D.Chief investigative reporter
At the New York World-Telegram and Sun, Edith Evans Asbury served as assistant editor for women's news.
Source: Biography section
4.Herbert Asbury, the second husband of Edith Evans Asbury, was best known for writing which book?
- A.New York City Newspaper Life
- B.The History of Manhattan
- C.The Gangs of New Yorkcorrect
- D.The Great Depression Chronicles
Herbert Asbury was best known for his 1928 book The Gangs of New York.
Source: Biography section
5.When did Edith Evans Asbury begin her career with The New York Times?
- A.1945
- B.1964
- C.1937
- D.1952correct
Edith Evans Asbury accepted a position with The New York Times in 1952.
Source: The New York Times section
6.What was the subject of Edith Evans Asbury's first byline in The New York Times?
- A.Holiday shopping on Fifth Avenue
- B.A ceremony welcoming Saint Nicholascorrect
- C.The Fifth Avenue Easter Parade
- D.A lost canary
Edith Evans Asbury's first byline in The New York Times was a story about a ceremony welcoming Saint Nicholas.
Source: The New York Times section
7.What policy change was credited to the 1958 reporting of Edith Evans Asbury?
- A.The creation of a housing authority for the elderly
- B.The overturning of a ban on birth control counseling in New York City hospitalscorrect
- C.The desegregation of schools in the South
- D.The establishment of a new city hospital in Manhattan
Edith Evans Asbury's 1958 reporting helped overturn an unwritten ban on the counseling and prescription of birth control in New York City hospitals.
Source: The New York Times section
8.Why did New York City Mayor John Lindsay reportedly smash his telephone?
- A.He was frustrated with the New York Housing Authority
- B.He was angered by the reporting of Edith Evans Asburycorrect
- C.He was reacting to news about the Great Depression
- D.He lost an election
New York City Mayor John Lindsay was said to have been so angered by Edith Evans Asbury that he smashed his telephone.
Source: The New York Times section
9.In what year did Edith Evans Asbury retire from her formal role at The New York Times?
- A.1981correct
- B.2008
- C.1973
- D.1980
Edith Evans Asbury retired from The New York Times in 1981.
Source: The New York Times section
10.For what specific work did Edith Evans Asbury receive the Page One Award in 1967?
- A.A series about the problems of the elderly
- B.An editorial about travel to China
- C.A report on desegregation in the South
- D.A series about a family's battle to adopt a blind foster childcorrect
Edith Evans Asbury was recognized with the Page One Award for a series about a family's successful battle to adopt a blind foster child.
Source: Awards and recognition section
11.Edith Evans Asbury was one of the first women allowed to join which organization in 1973?
- A.The Inner Circle Showcorrect
- B.The New York Newspaper Women's Club
- C.The Newspaper Guild of New York
- D.The Associated Press Board
Edith Evans Asbury was one of the first women allowed to join the Inner Circle Show in 1973.
Source: Awards and recognition section
12.Where did Edith Evans Asbury live at the time of her death?
- A.Knoxville, Tennessee
- B.Westchester County, New York
- C.New Boston, Ohio
- D.Greenwich Village in Manhattancorrect
Edith Evans Asbury died at her home in Greenwich Village in Manhattan.
Source: Death and legacy section
13.At what age did Edith Evans Asbury pass away?
- A.98correct
- B.102
- C.89
- D.90
Edith Evans Asbury died at age 98 on October 30, 2008.
Source: Death and legacy section
14.Where can the papers and correspondence of Edith Evans Asbury be found?
- A.The La Guardia and Wagner Archivescorrect
- B.The University of Tennessee library
- C.The New York Newspaper Women's Club
- D.The New York Times library
Edith Evans Asbury's papers and correspondence are available at the La Guardia and Wagner Archives.
Source: Death and legacy section
15.What was the cause of Edith Evans Asbury's death?
- A.Pneumonia
- B.A specific cause of death was not disclosedcorrect
- C.A stroke
- D.A long-term heart condition
A specific cause of death for Edith Evans Asbury was not disclosed.
Source: Death and legacy section
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