Clarence D. Clark

Summary

Clarence Don Clark (April 16, 1851 – November 18, 1930) was an American teacher, lawyer, and politician from New York. He participated in the constitutional convention for Wyoming's statehood and was that state's first congressman. He served as both a United States representative and United States Senator.

Clarence D. Clark
United States Senator
from Wyoming
In office
January 23, 1895 – March 3, 1917
Preceded byFrancis E. Warren
Succeeded byJohn B. Kendrick
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Wyoming's At-large district
In office
December 1, 1890 – March 3, 1893
Preceded byDistrict Created
Succeeded byHenry A. Coffeen
Personal details
Born(1851-04-16)April 16, 1851
Sandy Creek, New York, U.S.
DiedNovember 18, 1930(1930-11-18) (aged 79)
Evanston, Wyoming, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseAlice Downs
Alma materUniversity of Iowa
ProfessionPolitician, Lawyer, Teacher

Biography edit

 
Alice Downs

Clark was born in Sandy Creek, New York to Oratia D. Clark and Laura A. (King) Clark. He attended the University of Iowa at Iowa City.[1] He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1874. He was a teacher and practiced law in Manchester, Iowa. Clark married Alice Downs in 1874. In 1881, he moved to Evanston in the Wyoming Territory and continued the practice of law before becoming the county attorney of Uinta County, a job he held between 1882 and 1884.[2]

In 1889, he began his political career as a delegate to the Wyoming constitutional convention. He was elected as a Republican to the United States House of Representatives for the Fifty-first United States Congress and was reelected to the Fifty-second United States Congress. He was one of the new state's first representatives. He remained in office two terms, from December 1, 1890, until March 3, 1893.[3] He lost his bid for reelection in 1892.

He was elected as a United States senator in a special election to fill a vacancy in 1895 and was reelected to that seat three times, serving from January 23, 1895, until March 3, 1917.[4] After losing the election in 1916, he resumed the practice of law in Washington, D.C., but was appointed as a member of the International Joint Commission in 1919. He served as its chairman from 1923 until his retirement in 1929. After retirement, he moved back to Evanston, Wyoming where he lived until his death. Clark died on November 18, 1930, and is interred at the Masonic Cemetery in Evanston.

References edit

  1. ^ "CLARK, Clarence Don, (1851 - 1930)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
  2. ^ "Clark, Clarence Don (1851–1930)". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
  3. ^ "Sen. Clarence Clark". govtrack.us. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
  4. ^ "CLARK, Clarence Don, (1851 - 1930)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved November 18, 2012.

External links edit

Party political offices
First Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Wyoming
(Class 1)

1916
Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by
County Attorney of Uinta County, Wyoming
1882–1884
Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Joseph M. Carey
as Congressional Delegate
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Wyoming

December 1, 1890 – March 3, 1893
Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 1) from Wyoming
January 23, 1895 – March 4, 1917
Served alongside: Joseph M. Carey, Francis E. Warren
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee
1905–1912
Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by U.S. Chairman of the International Joint Commission
April 6, 1923 – April 30, 1929[1]
Succeeded by
  1. ^ http://www.ijc.org/en_/U.S._Chairs[dead link]