Hancock was born in Syracuse, New York, on February 13, 1885, the son of Martha (Connelly) Hancock and Theodore E. Hancock.^[1] Theodore Hancock was an attorney and political figure who served as New York Attorney General from 1894 to 1898.^[2] Clarence Hancock attended Syracuse's Madison School and graduated from Syracuse Central High School.^[3] He then attended Wesleyan University, from which he graduated in 1906, and New York Law School from which he received his LL.B. in 1908.^[4] After completing law school, Hancock was admitted to the bar and practiced in Syracuse.^[4]

As a member of the New York National Guard's 1st Cavalry Regiment, Hancock attained the rank of sergeant and served on the Mexican border during the 1916 Pancho Villa Expedition.^[4] During World War I, he served in France with the 104th Machine Gun Battalion, a unit of the 27th Division, and attained the rank of captain as commander of the battalion's Company D.^[4] He subsequently served as an assistant to the division's judge advocate, J. Leslie Kincaid.^[5] The 27th Division commander, John F. O'Ryan, cited Hancock for bravery during combat at Jonc de Mer Ridge, near Le Cateau-Cambrésis, France, on October 18, 1918.^[6] During the fighting, Hancock personally conducted front line reconnaissance to determine the best locations to emplace his guns.^[7] While under fire throughout the battle, he maintained liaison with the Infantry units his company supported in order to enable their attack.^[7] For his heroism, Hancock received the Citation Star.^[7] When this award was converted to the Silver Star in 1932,^[8] Hancock's decoration was upgraded the new award.^[9][10]

Hancock was Syracuse's corporation counsel from 1926 to 1927.^[11] In addition, he was a longtime member of Wesleyan University's board of trustees and the board of directors of the Syracuse Journal newspaper.^[4][11] Hancock was a member of the Onondaga County Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, and Syracuse Chamber of Commerce.^[4] From 1928 to 1948, Hancock served as a director of Syracuse's Merchants National Bank and Trust Company.^[12]

In addition to his legal career, Hancock was also involved in civic and charitable endeavors, including serving as president of the Syracuse Music Festival Association.^[4] In addition, he was vice commander of his American Legion post.^[4] Hancock was also an athlete, and was a member of the Sedgwick Farm Club (tennis), Cazenovia Club (golf and tennis), Onondaga Golf and Country Club (golf), and Skaneateles Country Club (golf).^[4] Hancock was also a member of several social organizations, including Syracuse's University Club and the Century Club of Syracuse.^[4]

In 1927, Hancock was a successful Republican candidate in a special election for the United States House of Representatives.^[11] He was reelected nine times, and served from November 8, 1927, to January 3, 1947.^[11] As a member of Congress, Hancock opposed President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal.^[11] He served on the Judiciary and Naval Affairs Committees and was also chair of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee's speaker's bureau.^[11] In addition, he served as head of the party's eastern speaker's bureau for the 1936 elections.^[11]

Hancock did not run for reelection in 1946 because of ill health.^[11] He died in Washington, D.C., on January 3, 1948.^[11] Hancock was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Syracuse.^[13]

In 1912, Hancock married Emily W. Shonk (1885-1974) of Plymouth, Pennsylvania.^[4] They were the parents of a son, John S. Hancock (1914-2007), a veteran of World War II who pursued a banking career in Syracuse.^[11][14][15]

Hancock's brother Stewart Freeman Hancock (1883-1966) was a prominent Syracuse area attorney.^[16] Hancock's nephew Stewart F. Hancock Jr. was a judge of the New York Court of Appeals.^[17]

Syracuse Hancock International Airport and the co-located Hancock Field Air National Guard Base are both named in Hancock's honor.^[18][19] After his death, Hancock's family donated his papers to Syracuse University.^[11] They were later transferred to the State University of New York at Albany.^[11] Hancock's papers, titled Clarence E. Hancock Papers, 1929–1946, are now part of the state university's M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections.^[11]

• Clarence Eugene Hancock grave at Woodlawn Cemetery (Syracuse, New York)

• United States Congress. "Clarence E. Hancock (id: H000146)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• The historical atlas of United States Congressional districts, 1789–1983, Kenneth C. Martis et al., New York: Free Press, 1982.