Charles P. Clever (February 23, 1830 – July 8, 1874) was a delegate from the

Territory of New Mexico The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becoming ...

. He was born in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

where he attended the gymnasium of Cologne and the

University of Bonn The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine U ...

. He immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1848 and settled in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...

in 1850. He engaged in trade from 1855 to 1862, and was appointed United States marshal for New Mexico in 1857. He became one of the owners of the Santa Fe Weekly Gazette in 1858. He studied law, was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1861 and commenced practice in Santa Fe. He was again appointed United States marshal in 1861. He served as adjutant on the staff of General

Edward Canby Edward Richard Sprigg Canby (November 9, 1817 – April 11, 1873) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. In 1861–1862, Canby commanded the Department of New Mexico, defeating the Confederate Gene ...

at the

Battle of Valverde The Battle of Valverde, also known as the Battle of Valverde Ford, was fought from February 20 to 21, 1862, near the town of Val Verde at a ford of the Rio Grande in Union-held New Mexico Territory, in what is today the state of New Mexico. It ...

, and as adjutant general of New Mexico from 1861 to 1865 and then again in 1867 and 1868. He served as Territorial Attorney general in from 1862 to 1867. Clever presented credentials as Delegate-elect to the Fortieth Congress and served from September 2, 1867 to February 20, 1869, when he was succeeded by

José Francisco Chaves José Francisco Chaves (June 27, 1833 – November 26, 1904) was a nineteenth-century military leader, politician, lawyer and rancher from the New Mexico Territory. Biography Family José Francisco Chaves was born on June 27, 1833, in Los ...

, who contested the election. Clever was appointed one of the incorporators of the

Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

. He also served as a commissioner to revise and codify the laws of New Mexico. He engaged in the practice of law until his death in

Tome, New Mexico Tome ( es, Tomé) is an unincorporated village and census-designated place in Valencia County, New Mexico, United States. It is located in the Rio Grande valley near the foot of Tome Hill (El Cerro Tomé), a notable Catholic pilgrimage site. The v ...

, on July 8, 1874 and was interred in the

Santa Fe National Cemetery Santa Fe National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the city of Santa Fe, in Santa Fe County, New Mexico. It encompasses , and as of 2021, had 68,000 interments. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, it ...

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clever, Charles P. 1830 births 1874 deaths Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from New Mexico Territory Prussian emigrants to the United States New Mexico Attorneys General New Mexico Democrats United States Marshals University of Bonn alumni 19th-century American politicians