John Daniel Clardy (August 30, 1828 – August 20, 1918) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

Early life

John Clardy was born in

Smith County, Tennessee Smith County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, the population was 19,166. Smith County is located in the region of the state known as Middle Tennessee. Its county seat is Carthage. The county was organized in ...

on August 30, 1828."Clardy, John Daniel". ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'' He was one of six sons and two daughters born to John C. and Elizabeth (Cayce) Clardy.''Biographical Cyclopedia'', p. 225 Three of Clardy's brothers served in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

; two of them were killed in action. The Clardy family moved to

Christian County, Kentucky Christian County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 72,748. Its county seat is Hopkinsville. The county was formed in 1797. Christian County is part of the Clarksville, TN–KY Metropo ...

in 1831. He attained his early education in the county schools. He matriculated to

Georgetown College Georgetown College is a private Christian college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains. The college offers 38 undergraduate degrees and a Master of Arts in educat ...

Georgetown, Kentucky Georgetown is a home rule-class city in Scott County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 37,086 at the 2020 census. It is the 6th-largest city by population in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the seat of its county. It was originall ...

graduating in 1848. After teaching school for one year, he began studying medicine under Dr. Nicholas Thomas of

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. He enrolled at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

for one year before finishing his medical degree at the

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine The Perelman School of Medicine, commonly known as Penn Med, is the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1765, the Perelman School of Medicine is the oldest medi ...

in 1851. After graduation, Clardy returned to Kentucky and commenced practice in Long View, Kentucky. After three years, he relocated to Blandville, Kentucky, where he remained until the beginning of the Civil War. During the war, he spent most of his time in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

as a member of the firm of Bacon, Clardy, and Company. He returned to Christian County in 1866, practicing medicine irregularly and engaging in agricultural pursuits. He purchased several tracts of land in Christian County and built his estate named "Oakland" into a five hundred fifty acre farm. Clardy married Ann F. Bacon in 1854. The couple had three children – John F. Clardy, Fleming Cayce Clardy, and Fannie C. (Clardy) Prestridge. Clardy served as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in the

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

church in which he was raised.

Political career

Clardy was chosen as a delegate to the state constitutional convention in 1890. He was a candidate for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1891, but lost the nomination to John Y. Brown in part because his campaigning was hampered by his duties in the constitutional convention. He was appointed as one of the State commissioners to the Columbian Exposition at Chicago in 1893. In 1894, Clardy defeated Judge Samuel Vance and William McClain for the Democratic nomination to represent the Second District in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. He defeated the

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 ...

nominee, Elijah G. Sebree, by a majority of three thousand votes.''Biographical Cyclopedia'', p. 226 He was re-elected once, serving in the Fifty-fourth and Fifty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1899). He advocated for the free coinage of silver as long as it could be kept on parity with gold. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1898.

Later life and death

After his service in Congress, Clardy retired from public life. He died at his home near

Hopkinsville, Kentucky Hopkinsville is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 31,577. History Early years The area of present-day Hopkinsville was initially claimed in 1796 b ...

on August 20, 1918 and was interred in Clardy's County Cemetery in Bells, Kentucky.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clardy, John Daniel 1828 births 1918 deaths 19th-century American physicians Baptists from Tennessee Georgetown College (Kentucky) alumni People from Christian County, Kentucky People from Smith County, Tennessee Physicians from Kentucky Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky 19th-century American politicians Baptists from Kentucky 19th-century Baptists