Edgar L. Lash, 75, a former mayor from Ohio who retired in 1994 after 16 years as a special assistant to the Presidential Inaugural Committee, died of a cardiovascular disorder April 17, 1999 at his home in Olney, Maryland.

Mr. Lash, who settled in the Washington area in 1978, worked for the General Services Administration as a special assistant for public relations.

He subsequently received an assignment with the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

Before coming to Washington, Mr. Lash had a long political and civil service career in Ohio. In the 1950s, he served three consecutive terms as mayor of his native Massillon, in northeast Ohio.

He also was Massillon's city auditor, special assistant for Ohio's Department of Highways and a regional manager for the Ohio Lottery Commission.

He attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa.

During World War II, he served in the Army in Europe and the Asian Pacific, and he received the Purple Heart.

Survivors include his wife of 54 years, Betty Jane Lash of Olney; five children, Edgar L. Lash Jr. of Gaithersburg, Grant A. Lash of Massillon, Byron W. Lash of Potomac Falls, Vanessa Taylor of Silver Spring and Elizabeth D. Lash of Olney; a brother; and 10 grandchildren.

On April 17, 1999, of Olney, MD, beloved husband of Betty Lash; father of Ed Lash, Jr., Grant Lash, Byron Lash, Vanessa Taylor and Elizabeth Lash; brother of Lester Lash. He is also survived by ten grandchildren, including his grandsons, Anthony and Stephen Lash, who had resided at their grandfather's home for over ten years. Services will be held 3 p.m., Wednesday, April 28, 1999, at Fort Myer Chapel, Fort Myer, VA. Interment Arlington National Cemetery.