John Bullock Clark Sr. (April 17, 1802 – October 29, 1885) was a politician who served as a member of the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...

and

Confederate Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly of the Confederate States of America that existed from 1861 to 1865. Its actions were for the most part concerned with measures to establish a new na ...

Early life and education

John B. Clark Sr. was born in

Madison County, Kentucky Madison County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. At the 2020 census, its population was 92,701. Its county seat is Richmond. The county is named for Virginia statesman James Madison, who later became the fo ...

, a nephew of Congressmen Christopher Henderson Clark and James Clark. He attended the country schools, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1824. Establishing a law practice in

Fayette, Missouri Fayette is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Missouri, United States. It is part of the Columbia, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 2,803 at the 2020 census. History Fayette was laid out in 1823. Th ...

, he served as clerk of the Howard County courts from 1824 until 1834.

Career

Clark was commissioned

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

of Missouri Mounted Volunteers during the

Black Hawk War The Black Hawk War was a conflict between the United States and Native Americans led by Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The war erupted after Black Hawk and a group of Sauks, Meskwakis (Fox), and Kickapoos, known as the "British Band", cross ...

in 1832 and was selected to command Missouri state forces during the Missouri Mormon War. Governor

Lilburn Boggs Lilburn Williams Boggs (December 14, 1796March 14, 1860) was the sixth Governor of Missouri from 1836 to 1840. He is now most widely remembered for his interactions with Joseph Smith and Porter Rockwell, and Missouri Executive Order 44, known ...

addressed his infamous 1838 Extermination Order 44 to Clark, directing that the

Mormons Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into sever ...

be "exterminated, or driven from the state." He was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

of the state

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

in 1848. Entering politics, Clark was a member of the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

in 1850 and 1851. He was appointed as a Democrat to the Thirty-fifth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of James S. Green. He was re-elected to the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh Congresses and served from December 7, 1857, until July 13, 1861, when he was expelled for having taken up arms against the Union. He was replaced by William Augustus Hall. Clark served as a senator from Missouri in the

First Confederate Congress The 1st Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from February 18, 1862, to February 17, 1864, during the first two years of Jefferson Davis's presidency, a ...

and a Representative in the

Second Confederate Congress The 2nd Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from May 2, 1864, to March 18, 1865, during the last year of Jefferson Davis's presidency, at the Virginia ...

. He also served in the field as a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...

in the

Missouri State Guard The Missouri State Guard (MSG) was a military force established by the Missouri General Assembly on May 11, 1861. While not a formation of the Confederate States Army, the Missouri State Guard fought alongside Confederate troops and, at variou ...

. Eight days prior to his being expelled from the U.S. Congress, Brigadier General Clark fought at the July 5, 1861 Battle of Carthage. On November 10, 1865, Major General

Philip Sheridan General of the Army Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close a ...

recommended the release of Senator Clark from confinement at Fort Jackson due to poor health. After the war, he practiced law until his death in

. He was buried in Fayette Cemetery. His son John Bullock Clark Jr. served as a general 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 ...

as well as a postbellum U.S. Congressman.

Notes

References

* * * Retrieved on 2009-04-20 , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, John Bullock 1802 births 1885 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American politicians American people of the Black Hawk War Confederate militia generals Confederate States of America senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Deputies and delegates to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States Expelled members of the United States House of Representatives Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from Missouri Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives Missouri lawyers Missouri State Guard People from Fayette, Missouri People from Madison County, Kentucky

Early life and education

Career

See also

Notes

References