When Dr. George W. Clark
III (George Warren) was born in Chazy in 1920, he was quickly and happily
swept up into a large extended family of hard-working locals - many of whom did not have children of their own. George Warren’s
aunts, uncles, grandparents and parents were fixtures in Chazy and Mooers, New
York. Familiar faces one would see daily – like the Postman, the Schoolteacher,
the Builder and Telegraph Operator. Many of them were born in the area and
spent their entire lives here, just like George Warren. Dr. Clark’s father,
George W. Clark II (1882-1934), was a rural mail carrier for Chazy and his
mother, Harriet McDowell Clark (1891-1960), was a schoolteacher in Mooers,
Chazy, Champlain and Altona – all part of rural school district #1 during her
years of teaching. George Warren was passed around between loving aunts and
uncles at gatherings, one of very few offspring in his generation. The two
families united by the marriage of George Warren’s parents were the Clark
family of Chazy and the McDowell family of Mooers.
George Warren Clark II - your local Postman
Clark Family
By the time George
Warren was born the Clark family had been a part of Chazy life for over 80
years. Dr. Clark’s great, great grandfather Henry owned the Fillmore Hotel in
Chazy, selling it to his son, Harry S. Clark (1809-1885) in 1866. Harry lost
his leg in the Civil War before returning to Chazy and buying his father’s
business. He soon changed the name to Clark’s Hotel. Eventually Harry’s son,
George W. Clark I (1834-1908), ran the hotel and raised his children there,
including George W. Clark II, George Warren’s father.
The Clark Sisters
George W. Clark II
was the youngest of seven children, and a favorite of his four surviving
sisters - Caroline (Carrie 1863-1953), Marion (Mame 1866-1948), Helen (Nell
1867-1953), and Martha (Mattie 1881-1960). Their sister Alice (1871-1880) died
at the age of nine. Nell married James A. Yale (1865-1936), head of Customs
& Immigration in Rouses Point for many years. Carrie’s husband John H.
North (d.1929) was a prison guard, Mame married Orrin E. Minkler (1864-1929),
and Mattie was married to Henry Swenson, a bank employee in Wellesley,
Massachusetts. They also had a brother who was a telegraph operator, William H.
Clark (Will 1876-1944) who married Jessie Boyd (d. 1941).
Harriet McDowell (in carriage) with her parents and sister Leona
McDowell Family
Harriet McDowell
Clark had six siblings. Her father, Julius McDowell (d. 1908), was born in Canada and settled in Mooers – making
his living as a builder. Harriet had two sisters she kept in touch with and who
lived in Clinton County - Leone and Kate (d. 1945).
Kate McDowell Oliver
Harriet was very
close with her sister Kate, who lived in Plattsburgh. Kate married Grover C.
Oliver. Grover owned Oliver Lumber Company, a building and roofing material
business in Plattsburgh. The Olivers owned the lighthouse on Point au Roche
Road in Beekmantown. Kate and Grover often wintered in Florida, taking Harriet
along with them after her husband, George W. Clark II passed away in 1934.
In 1915 these two
families became intertwined when George and Harriet married and settled down in
Chazy, New York. They were overjoyed when their son George Warren Clark III was born in 1920. This story continues!
To learn more about Dr. George Clark and his family stay tuned to this blog. We are also preparing an exhibit, "The Making of a Country Doctor" that will open at The Alice in October 2012.
