William Franklin Clark

CLARK

Posted By: Tina Keister (email)
Date: 1/14/2006 at 10:41:31

Willaim Franklin Clark, was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, June 13th 1829, removed thence to Harrsion County, Ohio, when eight years old, and when fifteen years old to Washington County, and commenced attending school at the New Athens; he was a diligent student, never losing an opportunity to improve his mind, even carrying his books with him to the field that he might con his lessons in the intervals of work on the farm; about this time he began the study of medicine with Dr. James Little, at Beverly, in the same county, and subsequently took a course of lectures at Cleveland; returning from Cleveland he entered upon the practice of medicine with Dr Little at Beverly, for a year or two; about 1853 he removed to Watertown and went into the practice by himself, in which he was very successful; in 1855 he was married to Miss Lavina W Ford at Watertown, about 1858 the family removed to Putman, Muskingum county, where the Doctor again practiced medicine with his former preceptor, Dr Little but his health failing he shortly afterward removed from there to Lowell, Washington county, where he followed his profession for some little time,; he also engaged in the mercantile business at this place, combining the two abocations as circumstances allowed; he remained in Lowell until the spring of 1864, when he removed to Magnolia, Harrison county, Iowa, resuming the mercantile business, and practicing his profession more or less until 1868, when he quit the practice except in a few families; in the spring of 1870 he sold his mercantile interests and engaged in the banking business at Magnolia, but left there on the 6th of September, 1872, for Boone, where he became one of the incorporators of the First National Bank and its heaviest stockholder; he was elected president of the bank and held that postition continuously until the First National surrendered its charter and became the City Bank of Boone; of which also he has been the president up to he time of his death; during the seven and half years of his residence in the city Dr Clark has been so closely identified with its social and business interests that his death comes home to our people as a great personal loss, more keenly and widely felt, perhaps, than would be the taking away of almost any every man in the county, and he enjoyed in the highest degree the respect and confidence of all, careful and methodical in his business habits, he was clear headed and sagacious in dealing with men, quick to decide and accurate in his judgements, to such a degree that his name long ago became th synonym of stability, safety, and success in all transaction of a businss nature, we remember during a panic of 1873 when a good many monetary instutions in the county were collapsing that while conversing with him on the subject of the bak failures he remaked to us that it was hard to tell what the outcome would be, but he expressed confidence that the First National would "weather the storm, for," said he, "we have our resources fully in hand; we have not indulged in foolish outside speculations, but on the contrary have uniformly adhered to a legitimate banking business and are prepare for almost any emergency"; the result showed the soundness of his judgement and the correctness of his conclusions; the bank under his able management, supplemented, during the last few years, by the valued assistance of Mr Ericson, the cashier, has remained one of the soundest institutions in the country and has uniformly prospered; the Dr was always at his post unlesss sickness prevented, and many times when other men would have succumbed and gone to bed he kept steadily at work in the bank, sustaining himself by the force of an indomitable will; Mr Ford remarked to us that this same will-power and determination manifested itself in thi earlier years of the Doctors life, when practicing medicne at Washington, Ohio, he kept four horses and leterally wore them all out in attending to the calls of the sick; in his social relations he was uniformaly kind and pleasant, charitable to the needy, a true friend, a good neighbor, and an upright and public spirited citizen; during the past he was one of the men on the building commitee of the new Presbyterian chruch, and to his efforts more, perhaps that to those of almost any other man, is due the successful accomplishment of that enterprise; he was one of the best informed men we ever met, not only upon topics connected with is business, but in matters of current interests, in politics, history and science, as well as in general literature; and his knowledge was accurate and always whwere he could use it and impart it to otheres in a few words that nver failed to be understood; he died April 16, 1880 leaving five children: Clara H, Effie, Fannie, Willie W and Lavina.

Came from the Boone Co Republic Newspaper and was copied in the 1880 Boone Co History Book