Myron Holley Clark (October 23, 1806 – August 23, 1892) was an

American politician The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bic ...

from the U.S. state of New York.

Early life

Clark was born in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Ontario County, New York Ontario County is a county in the U.S. State of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 112,458. The county seat is Canandaigua. Ontario County is part of the Rochester, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 2006, ''Progressive ...

on October 23, 1806. He was the eldest son of Maj. Joseph Clark (1782–1840) and Mary ( Sutton) Clark (1782–1865). His grandfather, Col. William Clark, had migrated to Ontario County from

Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is a county on the western edge of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its largest city and traditional county seat is Pittsfield. The county was founded in ...

, in 1790 after the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. His education was limited and was in the common schools of New York.

Career

He served in the state's militia as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

and then entered politics, first serving as President of the then-village of

Canandaigua, New York Canandaigua (; ''Utaʼnaráhkhwaʼ'' in Tuscarora language, Tuscarora) is a City (New York), city in Ontario County, New York, United States. Its population was 10,545 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Ontario County; some administrat ...

, and eventually becoming Sheriff of Ontario County, New York. He was a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

(29th D.) from 1852 to 1854, sitting in the 75th, 76th and

77th New York State Legislature The 77th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3 to April 17, 1854, during the second year of Horatio Seymour's governorship, in Albany. Background Under the pro ...

s. At the

New York state election, 1854 The 1854 New York state election was held on November 7, 1854, to elect the governor, the lieutenant governor, a Canal Commissioner and an Inspector of State Prisons, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly. History The National ...

, he was nominated as the Whig candidate, and was elected

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has ...

in the closest gubernatorial election in New York State history. He served as Governor from January 1, 1855 to December 31, 1856. As Governor, Clark was noted for his meddling with militia appointments, causing the resignation of the state

Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

John Watts de Peyster John Watts de Peyster, Sr. (March 9, 1821 – May 4, 1907) was an American author on the art of war, philanthropist, and the Adjutant General of New York.Allaben, p. 205 He served in the New York State Militia during the Mexican–American War an ...

. In 1862, President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

appointed Clark the first Collector of Internal Revenue of in the Ontario County district. Clark made several attempts to effect

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

in the state and signed a prohibition law while governor, but the law was declared

unconstitutional Constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applicable constitution. When l ...

by the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by t ...

. His steadfast advocating of temperance led to his nomination on the

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

ticket to run again for Governor at the

New York state election, 1874 The 1874 New York state election was held on November 3, 1874, to elect the Governor of New York, governor, the Lieutenant Governor of New York, lieutenant governor, a judge of the New York Court of Appeals, a Erie Canal Commission, Canal Commiss ...

. He finished in third place, behind Democrat

Samuel J. Tilden Samuel Jones Tilden (February 9, 1814 – August 4, 1886) was an American politician who served as the 25th Governor of New York and was the Democratic candidate for president in the disputed 1876 United States presidential election. Tilden was ...

and the incumbent Republican Governor

John Adams Dix John Adams Dix (July 24, 1798 – April 21, 1879) was an American politician and military officer who was Secretary of the Treasury, Governor of New York and Union major general during the Civil War. He was notable for arresting the pro-Southern ...

Personal life

In 1830 Clark was married to Zilpha Watkins (1806–1877), a daughter of Andrew Watkins and Abigail ( Stanley) Watkins. Together, they were the parents of five children, one son and four daughters, including: * Lorenzo Elijah Clark (1833–1917), a banker who married Elizabeth Sheley, a daughter of Alanson Sheley. * Zilpha Clark (1834–1915), who married Samuel D. Backus. * Mary Lee Clark (1835–1923), who married prominent banker

Frederick Ferris Thompson Frederick Ferris Thompson (June 14, 1836 – April 10, 1899) was a prominent American banker and railroad president who co-founded the First National Bank and what is now Citibank.

. * Charlotte Elizabeth Clark (1838–1929), who died unmarried. * Abigail Stanley Clark (1843–1902), who married banker George Norton Williams, in 1866. Clark died in

on August 23, 1892. He is interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in Canandaigua.

Legacy

As a memorial to Clark, his daughter

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

presented a scenic and geologically significant tract of land to New York State in 1915 that is now part of

Clark Reservation State Park Clark Reservation State Park is a state park in Onondaga County, New York. The park is in Jamesville, NY, in the Dewitt, New York, Town of DeWitt, south of Syracuse, New York, Syracuse. It was the site of a large waterfall formed by melting glac ...

. Comptroller Clark Williams was his grandson.

References

External links

National Governors Association website

at the

New York State Library The New York State Library is a research library in Albany, New York, United States. It was established in 1818 to serve the state government of New York and is part of the New York State Education Department. The library is one of the largest ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Myron H. New York (state) Republicans 1806 births 1892 deaths Sheriffs of Ontario County, New York New York (state) Whigs Governors of New York (state) New York (state) state senators People from Naples, New York Politicians from Canandaigua, New York New York (state) Prohibitionists American temperance activists Whig Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American politicians Activists from New York (state)