Barzilla Worth Clark (December 22, 1880 – September 21, 1943) was an American politician from
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
. He served as the
16th governor of Idaho mayor of
Idaho Falls
Idaho Falls is the List of cities in Idaho, fourth most populous city in Idaho and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, Bonneville County. It is the state's most populous city outside the Boise metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United St ...
, and was a member of the
Idaho Democratic Party
The Idaho Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Idaho.
While the party has been in the minority for most of the state's history, it has produced several notable public figures, including former U.S. sen ...
.
Early life and education
Clark was born in
Hadley, Indiana
Hadley (, ) is an unincorporated community in Marion Township, Hendricks County, Indiana.
History
Hadley was plat
In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Uni ...
, the son of Eunice (Hadley) and Joseph Addison Clark. Clark made the journey to
eastern
Eastern or Easterns may refer to:
Transportation
Airlines
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
* Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...
Idaho by
narrow-gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curv ...
railroad in 1885 with his family to Eagle Rock (now He attended
Rose Polytechnic Institute
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be e ...
in
Terre Haute, Indiana
Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...
, but left school due to a lung injury during track and field practice.
Career
After leaving school, Clark returned to Idaho and engaged in farming, mining, and cattle raising. On October 26, 1905, he married Ethel Salome Peck, and they had four children.
Clark became a licensed engineer in 1905 and worked as a
civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...
. His reservoir on the
Blackfoot River was purchased by the government and his plan for impounding
Lost River was merged into
Mackay Dam Mackay may refer to:
*Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives
Mackay may also refer to:
Places Australia
* Mackay Region, a local government area
** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region
*** Mackay Airport ...
. After two terms as councilman, he served as mayor of Idaho Falls from 1913 to 1915 and again from 1926 to 1936. During this term, the city built the Municipal Hydroelectric Plant No. 1.
Clark's interest turned to Idaho mines until he was again elected mayor of Idaho Falls in 1927 and served until his inauguration as governor on January 4, 1937.
During his two-year term, a state tuberculosis hospital was authorized, a judicious pardon and parole system was installed, and junior college districts were created.
Clark lost the Democratic primary for a second term to his predecessor,
C. Ben Ross,
who ran for
United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
in 1936 against longtime incumbent
William Borah
William Edgar Borah (June 29, 1865 – January 19, 1940) was an outspoken Republican United States Senator, one of the best-known figures in Idaho's history. A progressive who served from 1907 until his death in 1940, Borah voted for A ...
. Ross lost the general election in 1938 to
C. A. Bottolfsen; Clark left office on January 2, 1939, and returned to Idaho Falls and his private interests. He chose not to run in 1940 to reclaim the office,
which was won by his younger brother
Chase Clark (1883–1966). Chase was the father-in-law of
Frank Church
Frank Forrester Church III (July 25, 1924 – April 7, 1984) was an American politician and lawyer. A Democrat, from 1957 to 1981 he served as a U.S. Senator from Idaho, and is currently the last Democrat to do so. He was the longest serving De ...
(1924–84), a four-term U.S. Senator (1957–81) and presidential candidate in
1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
. In turn, Bottolfsen defeated Chase in 1942.
Death
Clark died of complications of lung cancer at age 62 in Idaho Falls he is interred at Rose Hill Cemetery in Idaho Falls.
See also
*
List of mayors of Idaho Falls
References
External links
University of Idaho Librarynbsp;– Barzilla Clark (1885–1943), papers 1937–1938
''Gem of the Mountains'', UI annual: 1938
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Barzilla W.
1880 births
1943 deaths
20th-century mayors of places in Idaho
Mayors of places in Idaho
Democratic Party governors of Idaho
Politicians from Idaho Falls, Idaho
People from Hendricks County, Indiana
American civil engineers
Engineers from Idaho
Methodists from Idaho
Deaths from lung cancer in Idaho