George W. Clarke (Iowa politician)

Not to be confused with George W. Clarke (Newfoundland politician) or George W. Clarke (Washington politician).

George Washington Clarke
21st Governor of Iowa
In office January 16, 1913 – January 11, 1917
Lieutenant	William L. Harding
Preceded by	Beryl F. Carroll
Succeeded by	William L. Harding
Lieutenant Governor of Iowa
In office January 14, 1909 – January 16, 1913
Governor	Beryl F. Carroll
Preceded by	Warren Garst
Succeeded by	William L. Harding
Personal details
Born	(1852-10-24)October 24, 1852 Shelby County, Indiana, U.S.
Died	November 28, 1936(1936-11-28) (aged 84) Adel, Iowa, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Arletta Greene
Alma mater	University of Iowa College of Law

George Washington Clarke (October 24, 1852 – November 28, 1936) served two terms as the 21st Governor of Iowa from 1913 to 1917.

Biography

In 1856 the Clarke family moved to Davis County, Iowa, settling one mile east of Drakesville. He taught school in Bloomfield before attending Oskaloosa College, from which he graduated in 1877. Clarke earned a law degree from the University of Iowa in 1878 and then moved to Adel, Iowa. He married Arletta Greene on June 27, 1878. He served four years as Justice of the Peace and in 1882 formed a partnership with John B. White for the practice of law. From 1901–1909, he was a member of the Iowa House of Representatives, serving as Speaker from 1904–1909. He was the Lieutenant Governor from 1909–1913 serving under Governor Beryl F. Carroll, and then was elected governor in 1912 and reelected in 1914. After stepping down as governor, he was Dean of Drake University Law School from 1917–1918, and practiced law in Des Moines, Iowa. His papers are in the collection of the University of Iowa.

One of his grandchildren was Nile Kinnick, who won the Heisman Trophy while playing for the University of Iowa.

External links

• National Governors Association profile
• University of Iowa Library profile and list of papers