Ezra Thompson Clark, Sr.

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Birth: Nov. 23, 1823 Lawrenceville Lawrence County Illinois, USA Death: Oct. 17, 1901 Farmington Davis County Utah, USA

Son of Timothy Baldwin Clark and Mary Keeler

Married Mary Stevenson, 18 May 1845, Clark Settlement, Lee, Iowa

Married Susan Leggett, 8 Nov 1861, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah

Married Nancy Areta Porter, 11 Jul 1870, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah

History - Clark, Ezra Thompson, a Patriarch, president of the High Priests' quorum of the Davis Stake of Zion and a resident of Farmington, Davis county, Utah, was born at Lawrenceville, Lawrence county, Illinois, Nov. 23, 1823, the son of Timothy B. Clark and Mary Keeler. He was baptized by Wm. O. Clark in Fishing River, Clay county, Missouri, in March, 1836, and was with the Saints during the mobbings of Missouri and Illinois. In 1845 he was ordained a Seventy and became a member of the 19th quorum of Seventy. He left Nauvoo as an exile together with the rest of the Saints in 1846, and reached Great Salt Lake Valley in 1848. Together with a few other settlers he spent the first winter near the mouth of North Canyon in Davis county, about one mile south of Bountiful, and located in 1849 at Farmington, where he resided during there remainder of his life. When he crossed the plains in 1848 his earthly possessions amounted to a very little, but by industry and hard labor he succeeded in acquiring considerable property. In 1856-1858 he filled a successful mission to Great Britain. In the year 1869 he went to the States after the remains of his son, Ezra James, who had died the year before while returning from a mission to Great Britain. In 1869-1870 he filled a short mission to the States, and in 1876 he labored as a missionary in Oregon and California. When the Davis Stake of Zion was organized in 1877 he was chosen as a member of the High Council. Responding to a call from the Church authorities he assisted in locating the settlement of Georgetown, Bear Lake county, Idaho. Having yielded obedience to the principle of plural marriage he served a short term in the Utah penitentiary, having been convicted under the provisions of the Edmunds law of so-called unlawful co-habitation. He was ordained a Patriarch about 1895. Elder Clark died at Farmington Oct. 17, 1901, leaving a large posterity. He was a natural financier and spent his means liberally in the interest of the Church, and not only did he fill a number of missions himself, but he also assisted a number of his sons to fill successful missions to different parts of the world. Bro. Clark married three wives. By his first wife, Mary Stevenson, he had eleven children, namely, Ezra James (who died in the missionary field ), Timothy Baldwin, Mary Elizabeth, William Henry, Joseph Smith, Hyrum Don Carlos, Edward Barrett, Charles Rich, Wilford Woodruff, Amasa Lyman and David Patten. By his second wife, Susan Leggett, he had ten children, namely, Seymour Thompson, Anna Vilate, Sarah Lovina, Susan Alice Bell, John Alexander (who died in the missionary field in Palestine), Eugene Henry, Nathan George, Marion Franklin, Laura Blanch and Horace Wells. Brother Clark's third wife, Nancy Porter, had no children by Bro. Clark. Bro. Clark is the only man in the Church known to have lost two sons by death in the missionary field.

LDS Biographical Encyclopedia, Andrew Jenson, Vol. 3, p. 343

Family links:

Parents:

 Timothy Baldwin Clark (1778 - 1848)

 Mary Keeler Clark (1786 - 1839)

Spouses:

 Mary Stevenson Clark (1825 - 1911)

 Susan Leggett Clark (1838 - 1902)

 Nancy Areta Porter Clark (1825 - 1888)

Children:

 Ezra James Clark (1846 - 1868)*

 Timothy Baldwin Clark (1847 - 1924)*

 Mary Elizabeth Clark Robinson (1849 - 1904)*

 William Henry Clark (1852 - 1854)*

 Joseph Smith Clark (1854 - 1957)*

 Hyrum Don Carlos Clark (1856 - 1938)*

 Edward Barrett Clark (1859 - 1955)*

 Charles Rich Clark (1861 - 1933)*

 Wilford Woodruff Clark (1863 - 1956)*

 Seymour Thompson Clark (1863 - 1893)*

 Annie Vilate Clark Tanner (1864 - 1942)*

 Amasa Lyman Clark (1865 - 1968)*

 Sarah Lavina Clark Knowlton (1866 - 1955)*

 David Patten Clark (1868 - 1869)*

 John Alexander Clark (1871 - 1894)*

 Eugene Henry Clark (1873 - 1931)*

 Nathan George Clark (1875 - 1956)*

 Marion Franklin Clark (1877 - 1878)*

 Laura Blanche Clark Cook (1880 - 1985)*

Burial: Farmington City Cemetery Farmington Davis County Utah, USA Plot: F-10-3

Ezra Thompson Clark, the son of Timothy Baldwin Clark and Mary Keeler, was born in Lawrenceville, Lawrence, Illinois on November 23, 1823.

As a young bay Ezra took part in the Mormon migrations to Missouri and back to Iowa and Illinois. He and Mary Stevenson were married on May 18, 1845 in Montrose, Lee, Iowa. They were the parents of eleven children. Ezra and Mary were in the first encampment which left Mississippi River in June of 1846 and they spend two winters at Winter Quarters. He arrived in Salt Lake City with his family October 12, 1848. He took a farm in Farmington, Utah where be moved his family in 1850.

Ezra served many missions as a preacher and a colonizer. These included a year spent in helping settle Iron County and in 1856 a mission to England. In 1861 Ezra entered the principle of plural marriage when Susan Leggett came, alone, to Utah. They had ten children. In 1867 President Brigham Young asked Ezra to build a flour mill in Weber Valley. Ezra bought an old sawmill at Morgan and transformed it.

In 1870 Ezra took his third wife, Nancy Areta Porter Stevenson. There were no children from this third marriage.

Also in 1870 Ezra was called to help colonize Bear Lake County, Idaho. His son Joseph Smith Clark went in his place to establish a ranch. Ezra filled missions to the East in 1871, to Canada in 1874-75, and to Oregon in 1876. In 1886 he was arrested on a charge of polygamy. He was fined $300 and sentenced to six months in prison. In 1894 he was ordained a patriarch of the LDS Church.

Ezra was a farmer of consummate skill and experience. Soon after arrivign in Cache Valley he had large peach and apple orchards; he raised sugar cane and many kinds of produce. Cattle, hay, and grain were the chief sources of his income. By the time of his death he owned 700 acres in Farmington. He founded the Davis County Bank and was elected its first president in 1891. He assisted in organizing the Commercial Store and was elected chairman of its board of directors. He was also Davis County Treasurer.

Son of Timothy Baldwin Clark and Mary Keeler

Married Mary Stevenson, 18 May 1845, Clark Settlement, Lee, Iowa

Married Susan Leggett, 8 Nov 1861, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah

Married Nancy Areta Porter, 11 Jul 1870, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah

LDS Biographical Encyclopedia, Andrew Jenson, Vol. 3, p. 343

Clark, Ezra Thompson, a Patriarch, president of the High Priests' quorum of the Davis Stake of Zion and a resident of Farmington, Davis county, Utah, was born at Lawrenceville, Lawrence county, Illinois, Nov. 23, 1823, the son of Timothy B. Clark and Mary Keeler. He was baptized by Wm. O. Clark in Fishing River, Clay county, Missouri, in March, 1836, and was with the Saints during the mobbings of Missouri and Illinois. In 1845 he was ordained a Seventy and became a member of the 19th quorum of Seventy. He left Nauvoo as an exile together with the rest of the Saints in 1846, and reached Great Salt Lake Valley in 1848. Together with a few other settlers he spent the first winter near the mouth of North Canyon in Davis county, about one mile south of Bountiful, and located in 1849 at Farmington, where he resided during there remainder of his life. When he crossed the plains in 1848 his earthly possessions amounted to a very little, but by industry and hard labor he succeeded in acquiring considerable property. In 1856-1858 he filled a successful mission to Great Britain. In the year 1869 he went to the States after the remains of his son, Ezra James, who had died the year before while returning from a mission to Great Britain. In 1869-1870 he filled a short mission to the States, and in 1876 he labored as a missionary in Oregon and California. When the Davis Stake of Zion was organized in 1877 he was chosen as a member of the High Council. Responding to a call from the Church authorities he assisted in locating the settlement of Georgetown, Bear Lake county, Idaho. Having yielded obedience to the principle of plural marriage he served a short term in the Utah penitentiary, having been convicted under the provisions of the Edmunds law of so-called unlawful co-habitation. He was ordained a Patriarch about 1895. Elder Clark died at Farmington Oct. 17, 1901, leaving a large posterity. He was a natural financier and spent his means liberally in the interest of the Church, and not only did he fill a number of missions himself, but he also assisted a number of his sons to fill successful missions to different parts of the world. Bro. Clark married three wives. By his first wife, Mary Stevenson, he had eleven children, namely, Ezra James (who died in the missionary field ), Timothy Baldwin, Mary Elizabeth, William Henry, Joseph Smith, Hyrum Don Carlos, Edward Barrett, Charles Rich, Wilford Woodruff, Amasa Lyman and David Patten. By his second wife, Susan Leggett, he had ten children, namely, Seymour Thompson, Anna Vilate, Sarah Lovina, Susan Alice Bell, John Alexander (who died in the missionary field in Palestine), Eugene Henry, Nathan George, Marion Franklin, Laura Blanch and Horace Wells. Brother Clark's third wife, Nancy Porter, had no children by Bro. Clark. Bro. Clark is the only man in the Church known to have lost two sons by death in the missionary field.

Family links:

Parents:

 Timothy Baldwin Clark (1778 - 1848)

 Mary Keeler Clark (1786 - 1839)

Spouses:

 Mary Stevenson Clark (1825 - 1911)

 Susan Leggett Clark (1838 - 1902)

 Nancy Areta Porter Clark (1825 - 1888)

Children:

 Ezra James Clark (1846 - 1868)*

 Timothy Baldwin Clark (1847 - 1924)*

 Mary Elizabeth Clark Robinson (1849 - 1904)*

 William Henry Clark (1852 - 1854)*

 Joseph Smith Clark (1854 - 1957)*

 Hyrum Don Carlos Clark (1856 - 1938)*

 Edward Barrett Clark (1859 - 1955)*

 Charles Rich Clark (1861 - 1933)*

 Wilford Woodruff Clark (1863 - 1956)*

 Seymour Thompson Clark (1863 - 1893)*

 Annie Vilate Clark Tanner (1864 - 1942)*

 Amasa Lyman Clark (1865 - 1968)*

 Sarah Lavina Clark Knowlton (1866 - 1955)*

 David Patten Clark (1868 - 1869)*

 John Alexander Clark (1871 - 1894)*

 Eugene Henry Clark (1873 - 1931)*

 Nathan George Clark (1875 - 1956)*

 Marion Franklin Clark (1877 - 1878)*

 Laura Blanche Clark Cook (1880 - 1985)*

Mother: MARY (Polly) Keeler Siblings: Sally Clark, Myra Clark, Laura Clark, Rhoda Clark, David Keeler Clark, Barrett Bass Clark, William Ogelsby Clark, JOHN Wesley Clark, Homer Baldwin Clark, Isaac Clark, Mary Ann Clark Wife: Nancy Arrita Porter Wife: Mary Clark (born Stevenson) Wife: Susan Clark (born Leggett) Children: Ezra James Clark, Timothy Baldwin Clark, MARY Elizabeth Clark, William HENRY Clark, Joseph Smith Clark, HYRUM Don Carlos Clark, Edward Barrett Clark, Charles Rich Clark, Seymour Thompson Clark, Wilford Woodruff Clark, Annie Vilate Clark, Amasa Lyman Clark, Sarah Lavina Clark, David Patten Clark, Susan Alice Bell, JOHN Alexander Clark, Eugene HENRY Clark, Nathan George Clark, Marion Franklin Clark, Laura Blanche Clark, Horace Wells Clark