Clayton Edward Crafts (July 8, 1848 – August 26, 1920) was an American lawyer and politician.

Biography

Born in

Auburn Township, Geauga County, Ohio Auburn Township is one of the sixteen townships of Geauga County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 6,443, up from 5,158 at the 2000 census. It is southeast of downtown Cleveland. Geography Located in the southern par ...

, Crafts went to

Hiram College Hiram College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Hiram, Ohio. It was founded in 1850 as the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute by Amos Sutton Hayden and other members of the Disciples of Christ Church. The college is nonsectarian and coe ...

and the Union College of Law,

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. He practiced law in

and

Watkins Glen, New York Watkins Glen is a village and census-designated place in and the county seat of Schuyler County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,829. Watkins Glen lies within the towns of Dix and Reading. To the southwest o ...

and then in 1869, moved to

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

where he continue to practice law. Crafts was involved with the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. From 1887 to 1897 and from 1901 to 1904, Crafts served in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

and was the speaker of the house. He died at his home in Chicago on August 26, 1920.

References

1848 births 1920 deaths People from Geauga County, Ohio Politicians from Chicago Hiram College alumni Illinois lawyers Ohio lawyers New York (state) lawyers Speakers of the Illinois House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives 19th-century American lawyers {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub