Harvey Clark
Harvey and Martha (Jones) Clark & children
A native of Allamakee county, Harvey Clark devotes his
attention to the cultivation of a valuable farm of one hundred
and twenty-seven acres located near Postville. He has been
successful in his pursuits, as he has always employed thorough
and up-to-date methods and has industriously and energetically
worked on the improvement of his property. He was born in
Franklin township, October 30, 1861, and is a son of Belfield
Carter and Mary (Powell) Clark, the father being generally known
as Carter Clark. He was born in Nashville, Tennessee, June 11,
1832, and in the fall of 1849 became one of the pioneers of Iowa,
first locating in Franklin township, this county. He was married
in Allamakee county to Miss Mary Powell, who was born in Elkhart
county, Indiana, November 28, 1832. Upon coming to Franklin
township, the father entered government land and began clearing
and cultivating his property amidst the wilderness, the Indians
only having been from here the year previously. He resided upon
his first farm until 1887 and then sold out and removed to Adams
county, Wisconsin, where he bought a large tract of land, to the
development of which he gave his time and attention until his
death in January, 1888. The mother resided upon that property
until the 1st of May of the same year and then returned to
Allamakee county, taking up her residence at Hardin in Franklin
township. There she lived until 1905, when she removed to Waukon,
where she now makes her home with her daughter Mrs. C. H.
Stillwell. The father was not only recognized as one of the
foremost agriculturists of Franklin township, but also held
various township offices, ever discharging his duties with
faithfulness and greatly to the satisfaction of his constituents.
The mother and her daughter Mrs. Stillwell were among the first
teachers in this section, holding the first classes in Hardin.
Mrs. Clark also taught one of the first schools in Post township,
at which time she made her home with Judge Topliff, the first
judge of Allamakee county. Mr. and Mrs. Clark became the parents
of six children. Cordelia resides at Waukon. William makes his
home at Marion, North Carolina, and is successful as a fruit
grower, specializing in peaches, with which he supplies the
wholesale markets. George, resident of Forest Mills, this county,
is a contractor and builder, making a specialty of bridges and
road work, but is also a prominent agriculturist, being an
extensive landowner and breeder of Holstein cattle. He also
operates grist and saw mills and is one of the most substantial
citizens of his locality. The fourth in order of birth is Harvey,
our subject. Linda is the wife of A. D. Farnum and they make
their home near Milwaukee, Mr. Farnum being a creamery expert and
butter maker. Mary, the youngest of the family, married C. H.
Stillwell and they reside at Waukon. Mr. Stillwell is engaged in
general contracting, house wrecking and similar pursuits.
Harvey Clark was reared under the parental roof and early
grounded in the old fashioned virtues of industry and honesty.
Naturally his educational opportunities were limited in that
primitive period of pioneer life and what education he received
was obtained at the little red schoolhouse in Franklin township.
He remained at home until about twenty years of age, when he
began his independent career by renting a farm in Franklin
township, which he cultivated for seven years with such good
success that at the end of that period he was enabled to acquire
by purchase forty-seven acres, which he still owns. As his means
increased he subsequently added to his holdings another eighty
acres and now operates one hundred and twenty-seven acres devoted
to general farming. His land is highly improved, and modern, well
equipped buildings testify to the thorough methods which he
employs and the prosperity which attends his labors as their
result. He is considered one of the most up-to-date farmers in
his vicinity and, while he has attained personal prosperity, has
also been a factor in promoting the agricultural interests of the
county. Mr. Clark is also a stockholder in the Farmers
Cooperative Store at Postville.
On May 31, 1881, Harvey Clark was united in marriage to Miss
Martha A. Jones, who was born near Waukon, this county, January
25, 1859, and is a daughter of Charles and Marinda (Lane) Jones,
the father a native of England. The mother’s native state
was New York, being born in Poughkeepsie, on the Hudson river.
During all his active life Mr. Jones was a farmer. Having crossed
the ocean early in life, he made his first residence in New York,
where he remained for about two years and in 1851 came to Iowa,
locating near Round Prairie in Makee township, this county. There
he entered government land and continued in its cultivation until
about 1871, when he rented out the homestead and bought another
farm near Forest Mills, upon which he remained until his death,
which occurred about 1898. The mother of Mrs. Clark survives him
and now makes her home with her sons upon a farm northeast of
Forest Mills, this county. Mr. and Mrs. Jones were the parents of
ten children, of whom Mrs. Clark is the third in order of birth.
To Mr. and Mrs. Clark two children have been born. Virgil
LaValle, whose birth occurred January 1, 1885, married Helen
Sharp, who at the time of her marriage resided in Portland,
Oregon. She had, however, previously been a resident of this
county. Mr. and Mrs. Virgil L. Clark now make their home in
Portland, where he is prominent as one of the younger and
successful members of the legal fraternity. They have one child,
George H., born October 26, 1911. Mr. Clark gained a high
reputation in Portland by securing the first verdict against the
Portland Electric Power & Railroad Company ever rendered
against that corporation since its organization. The suit was for
personal injuries and he secured judgment against the company for
the sum of five thousand dollars for his client, the case being
that of a young boy whose father had been killed by the road, the
guardian bringing suit against the company. Virgil Clark is also
prominent in Masonic circles and very enthusiastic in the work of
the order, being a thirty-second degree Mason. The other child
born to Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Clark is Libbie M., whose natal day
was September 25, 1890. She is the wife of Don E. Lamborn, a
prosperous farmer of Franklin township.
Mr. Clark has ever taken a laudable interest in matters of
political importance and for several terms served as township
trustee, only discontinuing his services at his own initiative,
refusing on account of other pressing duties to continue in the
office. He is deeply interested in the cause of education and for
over twenty years has efficiently served as secretary of the
school board. His principal adherence is given to the republican
party, the principles of which he considers best adapted to good
government and of greatest benefit to the majority. For some
years Mr. Clark was a member of the Mutual Brotherhood of America
but recently withdrew from that organization. He is highly
respected and esteemed in his neighborhood for what he has
accomplished, his success being especially creditable as it has
come to him through his own efforts. While careful of his own
interests, he is ever considerate of those of others and always
weighs his actions in regard to what influence they will have
upon the general welfare. He has therefore become a valuable
factor in progress and advancement and his life work has not only
been of benefit to him but of value to his state and county.
-source: Past & Present of Allamakee County; by
Ellery M. Hancock; S. J. Clarke Pub. Co.; 1913
-transcribed by Linda Earnheart
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