Isaac Clark

Isaac Clark was a brother of my g-g-g-grandmother, Phebe (Clark) Carey. He was born in New Jersey in either 1780 or 1781, migrated along with Clarks and other related families from Essex county, NJ, to Miami county, Ohio, at the beginning of the 19th century, then moved on to Illinois along with numerous other Clark relations about 1830. Although many of these Clarks settled in Logan and Sangamon counties, it appears that Isaac and his family ended up in Fulton county, in the northwest part of the state. Isaac died in Liverpool township, Fulton county, IL, 10 Nov 1846. Since Isaac had a total of fifteen children, most of whom had several children of their own, he has numerous descendants. One of Isaac's descendants, his great-great-great-grandson Lyle Black, transcribed the documents you'll see in this page, which we've tried to preserve with their original spelling and punctuation intact.

First Marriage. Isaac married Lydia Zeliph on Christmas day, 1800.1 Lydia's name appears in some records as "Jeleph", but this is obviously erroneous, since several researchers have traced her Zeliph family back to the early days of European settlement in New York. In 1998, Phil Deere sent me a descendancy chart for one of Lydia's ancestors which lists Lydia's parents as Peter Zeliff and Sally Riker. It contains a guess at Lydia's birth as occurring 1780 or 1781. Phil said "I received this file from Harman Clark, on which we had all been working. Thought you would surely want a copy." Another researcher has suggested, based on the names of Isaac and Lydia's children, that Lydia's parents were actually Benjamin Zeliff (Peter's brother) and Mary Ward. We would welcome any further information on this question.

Isaac and Lydia had the following children:

  1. Benjamin Clark, born 16 Nov 1801.
  2. David Clark, born 15 Sep 1803.
  3. Daniel Clark, born 4 May 1805.
  4. Isaac Clark (jr), born 7 Feb 1807, died 16 Oct 1860.
  5. Mary Z. Clark, born 6 Oct 1809.
  6. Sarah "Sal" Clark, born 21 Jul 1813.
  7. Elizabeth "Betsy" or "Betty" Clark, born 10 Aug 1816, died 15 May 1904.
  8. John Clark, born 26 Sep 1817.
  9. Zebdiah Z. Clark, born 1 Mar 1820, died 17 May 1889.

In the 1820 census for Miami county, Ohio, Isaac is listed on page 103 in Staunton township, along with a several other close relatives. The number of children in each category matches perfectly the children listed above, including Zebdiah. It appears Lydia was still alive at the time of that census, the woman in the 26-44 age group. The woman in the 45+ group could be an aunt, a servant or a mother-in-law. Lydia died about 1820 in Ohio.

Second Marriage. Isaac's second wife was Sarah "Sally" Royal, who was the widow of Anthony Stought. They were married 2 May 18212 in Miami county, Ohio. The Miami Valley Genealogy Index lists a marriage in Miami county in 1821 between "Clark, Isaac" and "Sout, Sally" [sic]. Sally was born 3 Mar 1793, perhaps in Virginia, and died 8 Aug 1846 in Fulton county, Illinois. Isaac and Sally had the following children:

  1. Lydia Z. Clark, born 16 Feb 1822, died 16 Nov 1899.
  2. William Royal Clark, born 15 Jul 1823, died 29 Aug 1906.
  3. Ezekiel F. Clark, born 4 May 1825, died 21 Jan 1899.
  4. Margaret B. Clark, born 1 Nov 1826.
  5. Amy Clark, born about 1828.
  6. James Clark, born 14 Feb 1830, died 27 Jun 1864 in Georgia. Lyle Black writes us that "James was mortally wounded in the battle of Kennesaw Mountain. He fought for the Union and was in the forefront of his comrades when he was mortally wounded in a failed attack up Pigeon Hill. I was very surprised to see him mentioned briefly n a book about the battle."

Excerpt from copy of cemetery records:

HARPER'S HILL CEMETERY,
LIVERPOOL TOWNSHIP,
SECTION 21

This little abandoned burial ground is just east of the Mount Pleasant cemetery about 1/2 mile. In 1970 there were only a few stones left. We belive, at one time, that there were quite a few more. There are cholera victims here who died in the 1849 epidemic. There is also a daughter of a Revolutionary soldier buried here. Around the turn of the century this ground was called 'the cemetery on the Thomas Keeler farm.' Later the land was purchased by John Harper and then was known as 'Harper's Hill.'

The above burials are unmarked. Ref: Raymond J. Wilcoxen, 126 N. 11th Ave. Canton, IL. and Miss Kathryn Barclay, 110 Windham Road, Norfolk, VA., descendants; Chapman's History of Fulton County, 1879 and Canton Register, July 27, 1905.

In April of 1995, Minerva June (Clark) Black, Lyle's mother, was in possession of a one page note (on notebook paper) written by Everett Clark on 20 Aug 1942. The note also had a "Renewal of Local Preacher's License" issued to Jasper N. Clark pasted to it. The information from the note and license are as follows:

Handwritten note from Everett Clark:

Isaac Clark. Grandfather & great Grand father of moast of the Clarks. Isaac Clark lived at one time near Troy, Miami Co. Ohio he had a brother named David Clark that was a Methodist Preacher Issac Clark married Lydia Zelyph she came from New Jersey they had ten children she died and was buried in Ohio some of these childrens names was Zebedah Clark Benjamin Clark Betsey Clark she married Eanos Jewel Issac Clark married the second time to Sarah Royal Stout she had children by her first marriage Thomas Stout Matildia Stout and others Issac Clark and Sarah Royal Stout raised a familey Ezekiel Clark William R. Clark Lydia Clark - Snell and others a record of all these children is found in this record book

These notes by Everett Clark
Aug 20 - 1942

Pasted license, with handwritten note at top: "Zebidah Clark was the father of Jasper Clark":

For Quarterly or District Conference. Renewal of Local Preacher's License. The License of Jasper N. Clark as a Local Preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church upon due recommendation, is hereby renewed. Signed by order of the Quarterly Conference of the Galesburg District of the Central Ill. Annual Conference, held at Bryant, Illinois this 6th day of February 1915

Joe Bell
President

The following is copied from two pages of handwritten notes of Everett Clark, apparently written at a Clark Reunion:

Clarks Reunion
August 31, 1941

We havent been able to get a very compleat record about Isaac Clark the grandfather of the Clarks There are 13 living grand children living that we know of - they are

- at one time Isaac Clark lived near Troy Miamia Co Ohio. He had a brother David Clark That was a Methodist Preacher

It seams that while grand Pa lived in Ohio he started a Program of we the people his first marrage was to Lydia Zelyph she came from New Jersey They had 10 children she died in Ohio then he married Sarah Royal Stought - they had 6 children and she had 4 children this made 16 Clark children and 4 Stought children the only boy in the Stought family was my grandfather Thomas Stought - My Grand father Zebidah Clark and my grandfather Stought were step brothers

Isaac Clark and his second wife came to Fulton Co Illinois in 1830 - and he built the first grist mill in Liverpool tp on sister creek - in 1833

The old water wheel that he built that run this mill is here on the grounds at the building at the mounds Isaac Clark died at the age of 61 years & some months and is buried in the old cematary on top the Harper hill We have always been told that it was his request That the name Isaac be kept going in the Clark family So if any of you Clarks wants to grant his request and raise some little Isaacs the commety of this Reunion will give a suitable prize for the first one presant at the Clark Reunion

The father of Isaac Clarks second wife Sarah Royal Stought name was Thomas Royal Jr he lived at one time in England 2 miles from Stockfort he came to America before the war of Independence and was a solder in that war

He married a woman by the name of Hannah Cooper In Springfield Ill you find near the South entrance of the Sangamon court house the name of Thomas Royal on a Bronze tablet

this is the same Thomas Royal that is related to the Clark as I have a more compleat record of Thomas Royal that proves he is the same man

Everett Clark

The following is from the notes of Robert Davis Clark:

Isaac and Sarah (Royal) Stought married May 7, 1821 in Ohio and moved to Fulton County, Illinois about 1830.

Lydia Zelyph was Isaac Clark's first wife.

The following is from a letter to Mr. Everett Clark, R.F.D. #4, Lewistown, Illinois from Albert Mitchell. The letter was not dated but the letterhead states "Albert Mitchell the Answer Man, Post Office Box 1213, Chicago". At the bottom of the letterhead is a printed advertisement for "Van Dyck 32's A FINE 6 cent cigar, The Modern-Taste Cigar that Satisfies 'Smoke Hunger.'"

Mr. Everett Clark
R.F.D. #4
Lewistown, Illinois

Dear Sir:

The Secretary of the Illinois Department, Grand Army of the Republic, Chicago, Illinois, has informed me:

"In answer to your inquiry with reference to the marker at a soldier's grave:

              Isaac Clark
                E.B.E.Y
              Ill. M.T.D.
                  Mil.

"Isaac Clark3 was a soldier in the Blackhawk war, enlisting in Sangamon County April 21, 1832, in Captain Jacob Ebey's Company, of Mounted Militia. He was mustered out May 25, 1832, at the mouth of the Fox River, 175 miles from Springfield.

"The inscription, with letters separated by periods, a not uncommon form used by record keepers and stone cutters, really reads:

Isaac Clark
Ebey (Capt. Jacob Ebey)
Sangamon County (S.Co.)
Illinois Mounted (M.T.D.)
Mil. (Militia)."

Thanks for writing. I hope you will write again.

Sincerely yours,

Albert Mitchell

Cemetery Inscriptions of Fulton County, Vol. 5, Orion, Banner, Liverpool Townships, p. 91, Apple Cemetery, includes the following listing of Isaac junior's grave:

CLARK, Isaac, - d. Oct. 16, 1860 53y s/o Isaac & Lydia Zelyph Clark,
Ebey's Co. Ill. MTDML Black Hawk War
1 Major Ira Winans' notes indicate that Isaac and Lydia were married in Ohio, and that all their children were born there. At first, I thought this was an error, since most of Ohio was not yet settled in 1800, and the migrations of Clarks and others took place around 1807. On the other hand, Isaac's grandson Isaac B. Clark told the census-takers in 1880 that his father, Benjamin, had been born in Ohio.
2 Following e-mail from Cheryl Rothwell confirms the marriage date:
I have a photocopy of certified copy of the files from the Probate Court of Miami County, Ohio, which says: 'I certify that Isaac Clark and Sally Stout were married together in matrimony on the second day of May last according to law by me. June 22, 1821 John [looks like] Turrow, J.G.' Record 626.
3 The state of Illinois' Black Hawk War data base does indeed include a PVT Isaac Clark among the soldiers in J. Ebey's company from Sangamon county, which matches up with Isaac junior's tombstone.
This page was last updated 16 Apr 2014.