Ariel Lionel Crowley

Ariel Crowley was born 17 Sept 1905 on the homestead ranch of Squire Green Crowley, his grandfather, in Leorin Precinct, Bingham County, Idaho. Ariel was the third child of a family of nine children.

His father Clarence Edmund Crowley was a farmer, taught school and also studied law.

Ariel was sickly in his early years and the doctor told his parents he would not live beyond twelve years of age. When he was eleven a Boy Scout leader encouraged his parents to allow him to join the troop. A years scouting with hikes and other outdoor activities strengthened his frail body and the rest is history.

He learned to read when he was four years old by studying the letters and words embossed on the front of the kitchen range and he read fluently when he began formal schooling. Reading was always as great interest to him. Family history was always important to him.

Ariel’s grandfather Crowley was a judge at Idaho Falls for many years and his father was a Justice of the Peace and later a highly successful practicing lawyer for many years. It is not surprising that Ariel took up the legal profession.

After school hours during his high school years he worked as a law clerk, stenographer and researcher in his father’s law office. In the fall of 1923 he entered law school at the University of Utah. In July 1929 he passed the bar examination with honors and was sworn in as a lawyer accordingly.

He practiced law in various capacities, assistant Attorney General of the state of Idaho before being appointed as Probate Judge of Boise County, Idaho in 1953. He continued in that capacity until 1971 when that function was transferred to a District Court System, in which he continued as Magistrate Judge and at times District Judge until 1975 when he retired at 70 years of age. However, because of his reputation as a fair and honest Judge, Ariel remained on call to the Bench until his 80^th birthday.

Ariel is an active member of the LDS church, he taught Sunday school for 56 years and he also held many church offices i.e. Missionary to England, Mission Presidency to England. He has published many books and papers concerning the authenticity of the Book of Mormon and other scholarly articles of scientific and linguistic subjects.

Ariel is a very talented person. He speaks fourteen languages, reads many more, and wrote poetry and songs, children’s stories. He was a church organist and sang in various choirs. One of his special interests was astronomy, and wherever he and his wife lived, he set up his own observatory with high technology state of the art equipment and telescopes.

Ariel married Davida Livingston in 1927. She died two years ago. Ariel and Davida had two daughters, Barbara Jeanne and Julia May, 23 grandchildren and numerous great grandchildren.

Genealogy was a special interest of his and he continued the research his father started in 1900. His research fills many volumes and some of his Olmstead family research can be viewed on LDS films 1,035,673; 1,035,675; 1,035,677 and 1,035,748. A Crowley-Olmstead index contains over 100,000 names.