The skeletal remains discovered on a Washington state beach in 2006 have been confirmed as those of a former mayor, who was believed to have drowned during a fishing outing in Oregon.
Clarence Edwin “Ed” Asher went missing while fishing in Tillamook Bay, a small bay on the Oregon coast, after which he was presumed dead. The Coast Guard conducted an extensive search, but it was suspended on September 6, 2006, just a day following Asher’s disappearance, as reported at the time.
At the time of his disappearance, Asher, who was 72, served as the former mayor of Fossil, Oregon. Authorities concluded he likely drowned, partly because he wasn’t wearing a life jacket and didn’t know how to swim, according to his wife’s statements.
In November 2006, skeletal remains were found along the shores of Taholah, a community on the Quinault Indian Reservation, approximately 295 miles north of where Asher disappeared.
Despite efforts from the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office and medical examiners, identifying the remains proved challenging, leading to their entry as a John Doe case in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, essentially becoming a part of a growing list of unresolved cases.
Fast forward to 2025, the case’s forensic evidence was sent to a Texas-based genetic genealogy firm named Osram, specializing in missing person investigations. They successfully created a detailed DNA profile and linked it to Asher through samples from his relatives.
Asher’s wife, Helen, passed away in 2018 at 85 after a prolonged cancer battle. Her sudden loss was described as creating a “huge hole” in her heart, prompting her to return to Condon, Oregon, where they had tied the knot in 1986.
Before marrying Asher, Helen was a widow, having lost her first husband in 1980 after a 20-year marriage. Asher himself had been married once before, but details about that union remain uncertain.
Helen and Ed formed a large blended family, boasting 21 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren at the time of her death, according to her obituary.
Asher was regarded as a local icon, dedicating his life to enhancing the community of Fossil. He spent nearly 50 years as a lineman for Fossil Telephone Company, managed the Asher Variety Store, volunteered as a firefighter and ambulance driver, and even served briefly as town manager before retiring in 1995.
