Rev. Darwin Jehu Clark

Rev. D. J. Clark, Minister Here Fifty Years Ago, Dead At 84

The Reverend Darwin J. Clark, pioneer minister and of the last circuit riders in this part of the country, died at the Spencer Hospital in Lusk on July 13 at the age of 84 years.

Although never holding a pastorate in Lusk Rev. Clark often supplied in the pulpit of Lusk churches and many couples of this vicinity have been married by him, babies christened, and he has spoken the last words at the funeral biers of many friends.

Darwin J. Clark was born at Prairie Center, Wisconsin, April 10, 1862. In 1880 he was married to Suzellen Van Borden and they became the parents of three children, all of whom preceeded their parents in death.

The family moved to Valentine, Nebraska, in the spring of 1883, and in 1884 settled on a homestead south of Hay Springs, Nebr., where they experienced the hardships and privations of the early pioneers of northwest Nebraska.

Later Mr. Clark attended a Wesleyan college in preparation for the ministry of the Methodist church. He became a member of the Northwest Nebraska Methodist Conference in 1892. Reverend Clark was pastor of the Methodist church at Crookston, Nebr., in 1893; at Box Butte and Mirage in 1894; at Harrison, in 1895; at Hay Srpings in 1897; at Chadron in 1899; at Atkinson in 1902. He became presiding elder of the Chadron district in 1903 and presiding elder of the Long Pine district in 1908. In 1909 he retired from the active ministry.

It was during the time that Rev. Clark was pastor at Harrison, Nebr., during the years 1895-96 that he first rode horseback over this vicinity holding religious services. After he retired from active ministry in 1909 he moved to Wyoming and bought a ranch some 30 miles north of Lusk, where his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Mildred Clark now resides.

Some 10 years ago he and Mrs. Clark moved to Crawford, Nebr., to make their home and Mrs. Clark passed away there in 1940. All three of their children preceeded them in death.

Living in this vicinity are his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Mildred Clark and three grandchildren, Allan Clark, Mrs. Bruce Christian and Mrs. Dale Leimser. He is survived by ten grandchildren and several great grandchildren.

Funeral services were held on Tuesday, July 16, at the Methodist church in Crawford, conducted by Rev. C. C. Norlin of Chadron and Rev. Eddy C. Newland of Crawford. Interment was in the Crawford cemetery.

Note: The gravestone death date does not match the obituary date. This was researched on Family Search, and the death date there is July 13, 1946, with birthplace and date the same as this obituary. It also indicates that his wife was Luellen Van Borden, and one entry has his middle name as John.

This gravestone photo was found on nebraskagravestones.org.

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