John Marshall Clemens (August 11, 1798 – March 24, 1847) was the father of author

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...

and of journalist and politician Orion Clemens, who was the first and only Secretary of the

Nevada Territory The Territory of Nevada (N.T.) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until October 31, 1864, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Nevada. Prior to the creation of the Neva ...

Biography

Clemens was the scion of a

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

family that owned both land and

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

in that state. The Clemens were said to be a Cornish American family originally from Looe in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, England. However, the Looe museum provides evidence showing that they instead emigrated from

Corby Corby is a town and civil parish in the North Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, northeast of Northampton. In 2021 it had a population of 68,164. From 1974 to 2021, it was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

. He was born in Campbell County, Virginia, the eldest of five children, to Samuel B. and Pamela Goggin Clemens. He was named after U.S. Chief Justice

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American statesman, jurist, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remai ...

. His father died in 1805, whereupon the family moved to

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. Pamela Clemens remarried in 1809, and John Clemens started working at age 11, as a clerk at an iron mine. He undertook the study of law in a local law office and became a licensed lawyer at the age of 21. At that same age, he became legally responsible for financial obligations deemed to be owed to his Kentucky stepfather for the costs of supporting the Clemens children and keeping family slaves. The burden of this debt left him without financial resources. He married Jane Lampton on May 6, 1823, in Columbia,

Adair County, Kentucky Adair County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,903. Its county seat and only municipality is Columbia. The county was founded in 1801 and named for John Adair, then Speaker of t ...

. She was a religiously conservative Presbyterian, while he was an agnostic freethinker who admired

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In ...

. They moved to Fentress County, Tennessee, where he practiced law, operated a general store, and served as a

county commissioner A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the County (United States)#County government, county government in some U.S. state, states of ...

, county clerk, and acting

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

as a conservative Whig. From 1832 to 1835 he was postmaster in Pall Mall. He speculated unsuccessfully in land and opened four stores which were unsuccessful.Harold K. Bush, ''Mark Twain and the Spiritual Crisis of His Age'' (2007) pp. 30–36. In 1835 the Clemens family, which by then included five children, moved to

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, initially to the town of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, where his son

Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...

, who was to become famous as the author Mark Twain, was born on November 30, 1835. John Clemens practiced law and operated a general store in Florida for several years before moving to

Hannibal Hannibal (; ; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Punic people, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Ancient Carthage, Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Hannibal's fat ...

in 1839. His retail business ventures were not successful, but he was active in civic affairs. He served as a steamboat and railroad commissioner and became a county judge. He served in the Missouri militia but did not serve in the debacle of the Honey War. John Clemens was the father of five sons (including Orion) and two daughters. He died in March 1847 from

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (Pulmonary pleurae, pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant d ...

and

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

. His widow suspected syphilis was involved and ordered an autopsy which the young Samuel Clemens may have witnessed.

Cabin

The cabin in which the Clemens family is believed to have lived in Fentress County, Tennessee, is displayed as part of the collection of the Museum of Appalachia in Norris, Tennessee.Information obtained from museum interpretive sign inside the cabin, 1 May 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemens, John Marshall 1798 births 1847 deaths County commissioners in Tennessee Missouri lawyers American people of Cornish descent

People from Campbell County, Virginia County officials in Missouri Tennessee lawyers 19th-century American politicians People from Columbia, Kentucky People from Pall Mall, Tennessee 19th-century American lawyers Deaths from pleurisy Deaths from pneumonia in Missouri