Clark Allen Smith (July 29, 1846 – March 6, 1921) was a justice of the

Kansas Supreme Court The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Marla Luckert, the court supervises the legal profession, administers the judicial branch, and serves as the sta ...

from December 1, 1904, to January 11, 1915.

Life and education

Smith was born July 29, 1846, in

Rock County, Wisconsin Rock County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 163,687. Its county seat is Janesville. Rock County comprises the Janesville- Beloit, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Ma ...

, where he grew up on a farm. After his initial education he taught school in between his further studies. Attending the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

he graduated in 1870 in the classics and then in 1871 in law for his degree in "the arts and law courses". Directly after obtaining his degree he moved to Cawker City in Kansas, where he was one of the first settlers of Mitchell County and arrived in 1871 where he became the first public school teacher. He obtained another degree from

Washburn college Washburn University (WU) is a public university in Topeka, Kansas, United States. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional programs in law and business. Washburn has 550 faculty members, who teach more than 6,100 u ...

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

, where he was a member of the

Phi Delta Theta Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, along with Beta Theta Pi and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad ...

fraternity. In 1873 he married Miss Sarah Bowers with whom he had two sons, Matthew A. Smith and Omar D. Smith who also became a lawyer. He was a

mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...

and a charter member of the lodge in Cawker, and was the organiser of the Cawker City Hesperian Library club. The club owned its own building and the Old Cawker City Library was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1972. In 1890 he was involved in advocating for the railroad to join northern Kansas to the markets of

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

and

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln ...

in Nebraska and then on to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and he was one of the incorporators of the ''Omaha, Superior & Southern railway company''.

Legal career

After teaching he then went on to start practising law and created a law partnership with F. J. Knight. His interests were not just in law but also politics and was elected to serve as county attorney in 1873, serving one term. In 1880 he was elected to be judge of the 15th district, the result was contested and the state supreme court decided that the incumbents terms had not yet expired. He tried again in 1881 winning again as an independent candidate, and he was then a judge for the 15th judicial district from 1881 to 1889, but lost the position as he was beaten by the

Populists Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

by 100 votes in 1890. He was a

republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and stood against Judge William D. Atkinson for the republican nomination for the supreme court. Atkinson had been serving on the court after being appointed to fill the seat left free when

John Calvin Pollock John Calvin Pollock (October 5, 1857 – January 24, 1937) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. Education and career Born in Belmont County, Ohio, Pollock received an Artium Baccal ...

moved to the

United States District Court for the District of Kansas The United States District Court for the District of Kansas (in case citations, D. Kan.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Kansas. The Court operates out of the Robert J. Dole United States Courthouse in Kansas Ci ...

. He then won the election in November 1904 and took up the position on the court to complete the remaining unexpired term of Justice Pollock. In 1908 he stood again with his being one of three positions expiring, and he was successfully re-elected for another term. He taught at

Washburn Washburn (alternatively Wasseburne, Wasseborne, Wasshebourne, Wassheborne, Washbourne, Washburne, Washborne, Washborn, Wasborn, Washbon) is a toponymic surname, probably of Old English origin, with likely Anglo-Norman and Norman-French influen ...

law school along with two other supreme court members Alfred Washburn Benson and Henry Freeman Mason, with Smith lecturing in 1912 on ''Extra Ordinary Legal Remedies''. He retired from the supreme court when he stood in 1914, along with two other Smiths, to keep the position but lost with

John Shaw Dawson John Shaw Dawson (June 10, 1869 – February 9, 1960) was a Scottish-born Kansas attorney who served as Kansas Attorney General, and as a justice of the Kansas Supreme Court from January 11, 1915, to January 11, 1937, and chief justice from Januar ...

and

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longes ...

winning the seats. He continued to practice law including being involved in cases presented to the supreme court such as ''Good v. Higgins, 99 Kan. 315 (1916)'' and ''State v. William, 106 Kan. 778 (1920)''.

Death

He died March 6, 1921, at his home in Cawker City after several months of ill health, and was survived by his wife and two sons. He was buried at the Cawker City cemetery. The Mitchell County Bar Association honored him for his work and his character.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Clark Allen Justices of the Kansas Supreme Court People from Rock County, Wisconsin People from Mitchell County, Kansas University of Wisconsin Law School alumni Washburn University alumni Phi Delta Theta Washburn University faculty 1846 births 1921 deaths