James C. Clarke (March 4, 1823 – December 9, 1902) was an American politician and railroad executive from Maryland. He served as a member of the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

and

Maryland Senate The Maryland Senate, sometimes referred to as the Maryland State Senate, is the upper house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. Composed of 47 senators elected from an equal number of constituent single ...

, representing

Baltimore County Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland. The county is part of the Central Maryland region of the state. Baltimore County partly surrounds but does not include the independent city ...

Early life

James C. Clarke was born on March 4, 1823, in Unity,

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, Maryland ...

, to William Clarke.

Career

In 1840, Clarke became a track repairer on the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...

. In 1842, he became a locomotive fireman for the railroad and held this role for 12 years. In 1851, he was superintendent of construction of a double track between Mt. Airy and Point of Rocks. In 1853, he became assistant supertintendent of transportation. In 1854, he became superintendent of the Central Railroad of Ohio. In 1855, he became superintendent of the northern division of the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...

. He was promoted to general superintendent of the Illinois Central in 1857. In 1859, Clarke moved to

Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Maryland, second-largest ...

, and partnered with Ephraim Albaugh and Michael Keefer to form a wholesale and retail grocery name under the name Clarke, Albaugh & Co. The store was located on the southwest corner of Market and Patrick streets. In 1861, he became superintendent of the

Northern Central Railway The Northern Central Railway (NCRY) was a Class I Railroad in the United States connecting Baltimore, Maryland, with Sunbury, Pennsylvania, along the Susquehanna River. Completed in 1858, the line came under the control of the Pennsylvania R ...

. After four years, he left to manage an iron furnace in Ashland,

Cockeysville, Maryland Cockeysville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 20,776 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History Cockeysville was named after the Cockey family who helped establish the ...

. Clarke served as a member of the

, representing

, in 1867. He was elected as a Democrat and served as a member of the

, representing Baltimore County, from 1868 to 1872. He served under Governor

Oden Bowie Oden Bowie (November 10, 1826December 4, 1894), a member of the United States Democratic Party, was the 34th governor of the State of Maryland in the United States from 1869 to 1872. Childhood He was born in 1826 at Fairview Plantation in Col ...

as brigadier general of the

Maryland National Guard The Maryland Military Department (MMD) is a department of the State of Maryland directed by the adjutant general of Maryland. The Maryland Military Department consists of the: *State Operations section, which manages fiscal and administrative ...

. From 1870 to 1872, Clarke was president of the

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the Grand Old Ditch, operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C., and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Patowmack Canal ...

and served for two years. In 1872, he was elected as president and general manager of the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Northeastern United States, originally connecting Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, with Lake Erie at Dunkirk, New York. The railroad expanded west to Chicago following its 1865 ...

system. He served for three years. He then became general manager of the Illinois Central Railway. In 1876, he was elected president of the

Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad The Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad was a 19th- and early-20th-century railway company in Kentucky in the United States. It operated from 1877 and was created from the merger of the Mississippi Central Railroad and the New Orleans, J ...

. In 1880, he was elected president of the Illinois Central. He remained as head of the Illinois Central railroad system until 1865. He remained engaged in that work until 1887. Around 1889, he became president and general manager of the

Mobile and Ohio Railroad Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ...

. He remained in that role until March 1, 1898, and was succeeded by Edward L. Russell. In March 1898, he prospected railroads in

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

Personal life

Clarke lived for a time at a house on East Church Street in Frederick. He owned an estate near Frederick until the end of his life. He lived in

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

, the last 25 years of his life. He was friends with Baltimore mayor

Ferdinand Claiborne Latrobe Ferdinand Claiborne Latrobe (October 14, 1833 – January 13, 1911) was a seven-term Mayor of Baltimore, a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, and an attorney during the 19th century. Early life Latrobe was born on October 14, 1833, at a ...

and ''Baltimore Sun'' publisher

Arunah Shepherdson Abell Arunah Shepherdson Abell (August 10, 1806 – April 19, 1888) was an American publisher from New England who was active in Pennsylvania and Maryland. Born in East Providence, Rhode Island, Abell learned the newspaper business as an apprentice at ...

. Clarke married Susannah Shaffer, daughter of Peter Shaffer. They had three sons and two daughters, Horace W., Wendall Bowman, Charles S., Virginia and Sarah. His wife died in 1892. His daughter Virginia married railroad executive Edward Turner Jeffery. He died following heart trouble on December 9, 1902, at the home of his daughter in Chicago. He was later buried with his wife in May 1903 in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick.

Legacy

Clarke Place, a road near Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick, was named in his honor.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, James C. 1823 births 1902 deaths People from Montgomery County, Maryland Politicians from Frederick, Maryland Politicians from Mobile, Alabama Baltimore and Ohio Railroad people Illinois Central Railroad people Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Erie Railroad Members of the Maryland House of Delegates Democratic Party Maryland state senators Maryland National Guard personnel Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Frederick, Maryland) 19th-century American railroad executives 19th-century members of the Maryland General Assembly