Horace Francis Clark (November 29, 1815 – June 19, 1873) was an American politician and railroad executive who served two terms as 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 New York from 1857 to 1861.

Biography

Clark was born in

Southbury, Connecticut Southbury is a town in western New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. Southbury is north of Oxford and Newtown, and east of Brookfield. Its population was 19,879 at the 2020 census. Southbury comprises sprawling rural country areas, sub ...

on November 29, 1815, the son of Reverend Daniel Atkinson Clark (1779-1840) and Eliza (Barker) Clark (1787-1864). In 1833 Clark graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a colonist from the Province of Massachusetts Bay who was kill ...

Williamstown, Massachusetts Williamstown is a town in the northern part of Berkshire County, in the northwest corner of Massachusetts, United States. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolit ...

. 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 1837, and commenced practice in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. In 1848 he married Maria Louisia Vanderbilt, the daughter of

Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...

, and they were the parents of a daughter, Mary Louise, who died in 1894. As a result of his family connection to Vanderbilt, Clark became involved in several of Vanderbilt's business ventures, including shipping, banking, and railroads.

Tenure in Congress

In 1856, Clark was elected to Congress as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, and he was reelected in 1858 as an Anti-Lecompton Democrat. Clark served in the Thirty-fifth and Thirty-sixth Congresses (March 4, 1857 to March 3, 1861).

Later career

Clark returned to his business interests after leaving Congress, and served as president of the Union Trust Company,

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, Michigan Southern Railroad, and other businesses. In addition, he served on the board of directors of

Western Union The Western Union Company is an American multinational financial services company, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1851 as the New York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company in Rochester, New York, the company cha ...

, and the New York Central and New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroads.

Death and burial

He died in New York City on June 19, 1873, and was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York.

References

Sources

Books

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Horace Francis 1815 births 1873 deaths Williams College alumni Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American legislators