- James West Clark
James West Clark (
October 15 ,1779 -December 20 ,1843 ) was aUnited States Representative fromNorth Carolina . Born inBertie County, North Carolina to Hannah and Christopher Clark, a successful sea captain and import/export merchant. James Clark graduated fromPrinceton College in 1797, was a member of the State House of Commons in 1802, 1803, and 1811, and was apresidential elector on the Madison ticket in 1812. He was a member of theNorth Carolina Senate from 1812 to 1814 and was elected as a Republican to the Fourteenth Congress, serving fromMarch 4 ,1815 toMarch 3 ,1817 . Clark was appointed chief clerk of theNavy Department by SecretaryJohn Branch and served from 1829 to 1831. He resigned his appointment in protest (as did John Branch) as a result of thePetticoat Affair (or Peggy Eaton affair), which rocked Washington society and the Jackson administration.In private life, Clark was a planter, businessman and slave owner. He owned several hundred acres of lands in North Carolina and at least convert|5000|acre|km2 in
Dyer County, Tennessee . In 1835 he moved the bulk of his male slaves toLivingston, Alabama , where he made a substantial profit in the slave hire business. Clark's son,Henry Toole Clark , helped his father manage the family plantations and their local business interests, which included a grist mill and operating a canal. His son would later become governor of North Carolina during the Civil War from 1861-1862.He died at home in
Tarboro, North Carolina at the age of 64.References
Poteat, R. Matthew, "Governor Henry Toole Clark: a biography" (McFarland Press, forthcoming 2009).
*Poteat, R. Matthew, "A Modest Estimate of His Own Abilities: Governor Henry Toole Clark and Civil War North Carolina," The North Carolina Historical Review, 84 (1) and 84 (2) (January and April 2007)
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