Joseph S. Clark
Encyclopedia
Joseph Sill Clark, Jr. (October 21, 1901January 12, 1990) was a U.S. lawyer and Democratic Party politician in the mid-20th century. He served as the mayor of Philadelphia from 1952 until 1956, and as a United States Senator
from Pennsylvania
from 1957 until 1969. Clark was the only Unitarian Universalist elected to a major Pennsylvania office in the modern era.
, and great-grandson of Joseph Sill and Jane Todhunter, social reformers and leaders in the antebellum
Philadelphia benevolence movement (1820–1860).
After graduating from Middlesex School
, he received his bachelor's degree magna cum laude from Harvard University
in 1923 and his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania
, where he was a member of St. Anthony Hall
, in 1926. He was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
, a member of the American Philosophical Society
, and a member and Vice-President of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
. In 1924 Clark, who had spent time at the Bar B C Dude Ranch
in Jackson Hole
, became a partner in the Double Diamond Dude Ranch
.
Clark began his career as a lawyer when, in 1941, he was called up to military service for World War II, rising to colonel
in the United States Army Air Forces
before mustering out in 1945. He won the Bronze Star
, the Legion of Merit
, and an honorary OBE
for his wartime service in the China-Burma-India theater
.
After the war, Clark became involved in Philadelphia city politics as a reform Democrat. Running against a long-entrenched and openly corrupt Republican machine, he won the city comptroller position in 1949, then moving up to mayor three years later. His Administration was distinguished by a new Home Rule Charter, and by a newly-active Philadelphia City Planning Commission, led after 1949 by Edmund N. Bacon. On the strength of his mayoral record, he won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 1956, and went on to beat incumbent James H. Duff
in the general election by approximately 18,000 votes out of nearly 4.5 million cast. Clark was succeeded as mayor by his reform colleague Richardson Dilworth
.
Clark won re-election to the Senate in 1962, defeating Congressman James E. Van Zandt
by a 51% to 49% margin. Clark's relatively liberal record, including opposition to the Vietnam War
, and support for gun control after the assassinations of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy
and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., caused his defeat in the 1968 senatorial election to Republican Richard Schweiker
, whose career in the Senate was as a liberal Republican.
After his defeat, Clark became president of World federalists USA until 1971. He lived the rest of his life in Philadelphia, dying at age 88 on January 12, 1990.
Clark III, and Noel (Clark) Miller (née Clark).
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
from 1957 until 1969. Clark was the only Unitarian Universalist elected to a major Pennsylvania office in the modern era.
Biography
Clark was a native of Philadelphia. He was the son of Joseph Sill Clark, Sr. and Kate Richardson Avery, grandson of financier Edward White ClarkEdward White Clark
Edward White Clark was the head of E. W. Clark & Company, a prominent financial firm in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Biography:...
, and great-grandson of Joseph Sill and Jane Todhunter, social reformers and leaders in the antebellum
History of the United States (1789–1849)
With the election of George Washington as the first president in 1789, the new government acted quickly to rebuild the nation's financial structure. Enacting the program of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, the government assumed the Revolutionary war debts of the state and the national...
Philadelphia benevolence movement (1820–1860).
After graduating from Middlesex School
Middlesex School
Middlesex School is an independent secondary school for grades 9 - 12 located in Concord, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1901 by a Roxbury Latin School alumnus, Frederick Winsor, who headed the school until 1937. Winsor set up a National Scholarship Program for the school, the first of its kind...
, he received his bachelor's degree magna cum laude from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1923 and his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, where he was a member of St. Anthony Hall
St. Anthony Hall
St. Anthony Hall, also known as Saint Anthony Hall and The Order of St. Anthony, is a national college literary society also known as the Fraternity of Delta Psi at colleges in the United States of America. St...
, in 1926. He was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
, a member of the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
, and a member and Vice-President of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
American Academy of Political and Social Science
The American Academy of Political and Social Science was founded in 1889 to promote progress in the social sciences. Sparked by Professor Edmund J. James and drawing from members of the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College, and Bryn Mawr College, the Academy sought to...
. In 1924 Clark, who had spent time at the Bar B C Dude Ranch
Bar B C Dude Ranch
The Bar B C Dude Ranch was established near Moose, Wyoming in 1912 as a dude ranch by Struthers Burt and Dr. Horace Carncross, using their initials as the brand. Rather than converting a working ranch, Burt and Carncross built a tourist-oriented dude ranch from the ground up, using a style called...
in Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole, originally called Jackson's Hole, is a valley located in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the western border with Idaho. The name "hole" derives from language used by early trappers or mountain men, who primarily entered the valley from the north and east and had to descend along...
, became a partner in the Double Diamond Dude Ranch
Double Diamond Dude Ranch Dining Hall
The Double Diamond Dude Ranch Dining Hall was built in 1945 as the centerpiece of a dude ranch operated by Frank Williams and Joseph Clark in Grand Teton National Park. The ranch was opened in 1924 with a dozen tent cabins and log buildings for a kitchen and dining hall, lounge and commissary. In...
.
Clark began his career as a lawyer when, in 1941, he was called up to military service for World War II, rising to colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
before mustering out in 1945. He won the Bronze Star
Bronze Star Medal
The Bronze Star Medal is a United States Armed Forces individual military decoration that may be awarded for bravery, acts of merit, or meritorious service. As a medal it is awarded for merit, and with the "V" for valor device it is awarded for heroism. It is the fourth-highest combat award of the...
, the Legion of Merit
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
, and an honorary OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
for his wartime service in the China-Burma-India theater
China Burma India Theater of World War II
China Burma India Theater was the name used by the United States Army for its forces operating in conjunction with British and Chinese Allied air and land forces in China, Burma, and India during World War II...
.
After the war, Clark became involved in Philadelphia city politics as a reform Democrat. Running against a long-entrenched and openly corrupt Republican machine, he won the city comptroller position in 1949, then moving up to mayor three years later. His Administration was distinguished by a new Home Rule Charter, and by a newly-active Philadelphia City Planning Commission, led after 1949 by Edmund N. Bacon. On the strength of his mayoral record, he won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 1956, and went on to beat incumbent James H. Duff
James H. Duff
James Henderson Duff was an American lawyer and politician in the mid-20th century. He served as the 34th Governor of Pennsylvania and U.S...
in the general election by approximately 18,000 votes out of nearly 4.5 million cast. Clark was succeeded as mayor by his reform colleague Richardson Dilworth
Richardson Dilworth
Richardson K. Dilworth was an American Democratic Party politician, born in the Pittsburgh area, who served as the 91st Mayor of Philadelphia from 1956 to 1962.-Education and early career:...
.
Clark won re-election to the Senate in 1962, defeating Congressman James E. Van Zandt
James E. Van Zandt
James Edward Van Zandt was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.-Biography:...
by a 51% to 49% margin. Clark's relatively liberal record, including opposition to the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, and support for gun control after the assassinations of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., caused his defeat in the 1968 senatorial election to Republican Richard Schweiker
Richard Schweiker
Richard Schultz Schweiker is a former U.S. Congressman and Senator representing the state of Pennsylvania. He later was Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Cabinet of President Ronald Reagan.-Early life:...
, whose career in the Senate was as a liberal Republican.
After his defeat, Clark became president of World federalists USA until 1971. He lived the rest of his life in Philadelphia, dying at age 88 on January 12, 1990.
Family
Clark had a younger brother, Avery B. Clark. He had two children, Joseph S.Clark III, and Noel (Clark) Miller (née Clark).
Further reading
- Who's Who in America. Chicago : Marquis, 1984.
- Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: Clark, Joseph Sill
External links
- The Joseph Sill Clark Papers, including reports, articles, news releases and some correspondence, are available for research use at the Historical Society of PennsylvaniaHistorical Society of PennsylvaniaThe Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historical society founded in 1824 and based in Philadelphia. The Society's building, designed by Addison Hutton and listed on Philadelphia's Register of Historical Places, houses some 600,000 printed items and over 19 million manuscript and graphic items...
.