Other possible relatives of the Clarks of Centropolis

As to the story that Jacob Clark had a sister Temperance who married a Maulding, the 1850 Federal Census for Hamilton County, Illinois, page 391 lists a John Malding, age 39, born in Kentucky, with a wife, Temperance, age 36, also born in Kentucky. They had five children, all born in Illinois as follows, Margaret - 15, Lucy - 10, John - 8, Isaac- 5, and James - 2. Aunt Carrie Clark Fisher said she did not recall hearing of a John Maulding. She did say that Bill Maulding married Jake Hughes' sister and that "We girls always claimed cousinship." She went on to say that Mary, Goldie, and Lola Maulding all lived in Centropolis when she was in her early teens and that the last she heard of the Mauldings, Goldie was married to Fred Detwiler of near Paola, Kansas.

The 1880 Federal Census for Franklin County, Kansas lists on page 23 a William Maulding, age 28, born in Illinois, and wife Sarah, age 22, born in Missouri, with children - Mary - age 2 and Augusta - age 1, both born in Kansas. Neither this, nor the previous paragraph proves anything. They are included merely for the beneiit of future researchers.

While we have every confidence in the handed-down story that Jacob Clark had a brother Reuben, We have been unable to tie any Reuben of record into our own branch of the Clark Family. Even so, there was a Reuben Clark in the Black Hawk War who enlisted from Franklin County, Illinois, the same as our Grandfather Jacob. In fact, they were in the same company. We have a photocopy of Reuben's letter of December 9, 1850 applying for a bounty land grant on the basis of War of 1812 and Black Hawk War service. This letter was written in Lawrence County, Arkansas. We also have a photocopy of a July 7, 1855 letter written in Butler County, Missouri by the same Reuben applying for additional bounty land.

The 1850 Federal Census for Lawrence County, Arkansas has the following listing on page 34 -


NAME AGE PLACE 0F BIRTH

Reuben Clark 55 North Carolina
Elizabeth " 30 Tennessee
Lucinda " 14 Illinois
Lemuel " 7-1/2 Arkansas
Benjamin Wharton 19 Tennessee
Knue " 12 Arkansas


Of course all this proves exactly nothing but the writer seems to have a vague recollection of some tie-in between a Bill Wharton of Ottawa, Kansas, and the Centropolis Clark Family. Possibly some younger and more resourceful researcher can run it down.

As to a Tilford Clark, all we have is the handed-down story that Jacob Clark had a brother by that name. Jacob's son John did name one of his sons Tilford but the writer has no information that he was named in honor of an Uncle Til- ford. Anita Cole located a book, "Early Settlers of Sangamon County"(Illinois) which contains an interesting possibility. On page 523 it lists a Docia Miller, "born in Sangamon County, married Rev. Tilford Clarke, have nine children, and live in Gardner Township, Sangamon County, Illinois." This, too, is a subject for younger and more persistent researchers.

Another Clark whose relationship we have been unable to trace was Pleasanton Clark who Aunt Carrie described as a fine old Baptist Preacher. Aunt Carrie and her brothers and sisters all called him 'Uncle Plez' but she said she never did know which part of the Clark tribe he actually belonged to. She said her father (Grandfather William) really loved 'Uncle Plez' and had Plez stay in his home when he had a meeting at Centropolis. They let her go to meeting one night when she was about 10 years old and she got so overcome with his deep sonorous voice and the honor of his staying in her home that she cried. Of course crying at a revival meeting is taken as sure evidence of 'conviction' and in her case it wasn't long before the good sisters were hovering over her ready to assist in bringing her 'into the fold'. And the more they 'assisted', the harder she cried. She couldn't explain why and they couldn't understand why. If she wasn't renouncing the accumulated wickedness of 10 years spent in and around Centropolis, perhaps it was her five brothers she was weeping over. We aren't told how the impasse was resolved that night but we know the details are fresh in Aunt Carrie's mind 80 years later.

Uncle Plez and Aunt Delia had a daughter Nellie and in later years they came to visit at the William Clark home. Ruth Clark Jones did not remember hearing of Pleasanton Clark but tells of her family having pictures of a 'Lou Clark' and also that a Nellie Clark visited in their home. Ruth said Nellie married a 'Gorman?' (probably Gormley) who was a band master in Ottawa, Kansas, and whose band used to per- form in Forest Park- Possibly they were daughters of Plez.

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