Miriam Murphy

“Thanks Everyone”
Miriam Irene Brinton Murphy died May 12, 2013 after several years of declining health. She was born November 10, 1933, in Salt Lake City to Edward A. and Julia Irene Maxfield Brinton, the youngest of five daughters. The happiest days of her childhood were spent working at her family’s Maxfield Lodge in Big Cottonwood Canyon and riding in her Uncle Oliver’s truck.
Survived by: son Bill; life companion Cherie Hale; sisters, Laura Byme and Ruth Mulvay (Bill); beloved nieces and nephews. Preceded in death by: her parents; aunts and uncles; sisters, Virginia Angus and Lois Mitchell; brothers-in-law John Mitchell and Jim Byrne; and nephew Steve Albretsen.
Mims graduated from West High where she worked on the student newspaper and joined the Pep Club. She was also an avid skier. In college she majored in English Literature, attending UC Berkeley and graduating from the University of Utah where she was editor of the Daily Utah Chronicle. Mims worked in PR and advertising in SLC and New York before moving to San Francisco. She married William H. Murphy in 1964, later divorced, one child, Bill.
In 1970 Mims returned to SLC and worked for the Utah State Historical Society as associate editor of the Utah Historical Quarterly. She retired in 1997 after writing and editing dozens of historical articles and books, including A History of Wayne County, and Utah Trivia (with Kent Powell). She loved her co-workers, especially her boss, Stan Layton, and her mentor and dear friend, the late Helen Papanikolas.
Mims was an accomplished poet. A collection of her poems, That Green Light That Lingers, was published in 2001, which included her masterpiece on the 1924 Castle Gate Mine disaster. After retiring she and Cherie traveled extensively in the US & Europe, particularly enjoying the Monterey Peninsula and France. She played in a bridge group with friends for over 30 years.
Mims was a long-time member of the Utah Audubon Society, Red Butte Gardens, the Nature Conservancy, Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Plan USA and similar organizations. Memorial donations to any worthy cause would be appreciated in lieu of flowers. Thanks to Mims’ doctors and the staffs at The Coventry, Haven Hospice and Sunrise for their loving care.
At Mims’ request no services were held. A celebration of her life will be held at a later date. Many, many people contributed to Mims’ life. She remembered you all with great fondness. “We’re all on family one Planet Earth.”