John Jay CLARK

                   HISTORICAL INFORMATION:
    John Jay Clark was born in Ohio but went to Illinois when his parents moved there, the exact year I do not know, but it was in the early 1820's.  He attended Shurtiff College, Alton, IL in 1837-1838.  In 1848 he moved to Sugar Grove, IL., and it was there his first wife died.  He then married Betsy Van Atta whose parents had come to Sugar Grove from PA..  John Jay was licensed to preach by the Babptist Church in Sugar Grove in 1851. He crossed the Plains in 1854 and settled in Linn Co., OR.  In the covered wagon train were his wife's parents, Mr & Mrs Gearsham Van Atta, with their children and his own mother who was at that time 74.  They had three wagons for the two families. They left Sugar Grove April 1, 1854 and after a journey minus any real danger from Indians, reached the John Day River in August.  On August 12th they met near Hepner by John Jay's brother Alvin and his brother-in-law Ransome Long, who had come to Oregon in 1852 by Ox-team.  It was here they saw Mt. Hood for the first time.  They followed the Barlow Road on the south side of Mt. Hood and on August 28th camped at Clackamas; from there they went to Oregon City, then by easy stages to the farm which it was decided to buy, in Linn Co.. After five months and four days of travel they were in their own home again-- a cabin 15 x 15 ft. to house the family of two grown-ups and three children.  In the spring of 1857, John Jay Clark was ordained and was Pastor of the small Baptist Church of the neighborhood until they went to Washington in 1863. In 1857 they built a four room house which seemed like a palace after three years in a small cabin. In February of 1860, Grandma Anna Clark died at the age of 80. In 1861 was the flood caused by continuous rains and melting snows.  In May 1863, the Clarks and the Eslem Halls, in five wagons, started for Washington Territory, near Vancouver, where Alvin Clark had already taken up a home-stead.  It took six days to make the short trip from their old home in Linn Co. to Portland where they boarded a Scow and went down the Willamette to the Columbia River to Vancouver.  From Vancouver they went out to Alvin Clarks on the old Durgan Place on Burnt Bridge Creek. On May 23, 1863, they started for their new home which already had a small cabin and was located not far from Brush Prairie.  The Van Atta's were already settled at Brush Prairie and the Brush Prairie Cemetary is located on ground originally a part of their farm. John Jay Clark organized the Brush Prairie Baptist Church of which he was Pastor for twenty-seven years.  This is the oldest Baptist Church in the state of Washington that has had a continuous existence since its organization.  Besides being a Minister he was the pioneer doctor so after moralizing all the neighborhood couples he delivered all the babies.  In 1869 he served a term in the Washington Legislature.  The only way to reach Olympia was by stagecoach and to get to one session he walked the whole way since he had not enough money to buy stage fare.  He was much loved and was affectionately known as Uncle Johnny Clark. Besides being a minister, doctor, and farmer, he was also a teacher, and for years the post office was at his house. He died in Portland, Oregon at the home of his oldest daughter, Mrs Napoleon Davis (Phoebe Irene), on November 24, 1902 at the age of 87.  He was buried in the Brush Prairie Cemetary. By - Willeda L. Arnold  (Mrs W,H,)

    Willeda L. Arnold
    Rt. 4, Box 52E, Vancouver, Washington
    1941