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Samuel Churchill Clark (September 12, 1842 – March 8, 1862) was a Confederate military officer who was killed during the American Civil War in the Battle of Pea Ridge.

Early life

Samuel Churchill Clark was born in St. Louis, Missouri on September 12, 1842.

He was born to Major Meriwether Lewis Clark and Abigail Churchill. His grandfather was famed American explorer William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition whose brother was George Rogers Clark. His brother was prominent St. Louis citizen Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr. and the founder of Churchill Downs. On his mother's side of the family, his uncle was the 13th Governor of Arkansas Thomas James Churchill.

American Civil War

In 1859, Samuel Churchill Clark was admitted to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Missouri Governor Trusten Polk was one of the several advocates who appealed to President James Buchanan on his behalf. The onset of the American Civil War led to his resignation as a cadet, prompting his departure home on July 1, 1861.

Missouri State Guard

Enlisting as a private, Clark joined the Missouri State Guard in Lexington, Missouri. He was first assigned to the 8th Division of the MSG under James S. Rains. At the First Battle of Lexington in September 1861, he fought as an artilleryman within the Missouri forces of Major General Sterling Price. In command of two pieces of field artillery, he targeted the Masonic College building and grounds, where Union Colonel James A. Mulligan's forces had their Federal headquarters. On October 23, 1861, he was appointed captain of the 1st Battery of Artillery in the 4th Division of the State Guard under General William Y. Slack.

Confederate States Army

On January 16, 1862, the battery was reorganized by General Price for service in the Confederate States Army. Captain Clark's battery, part of the First Missouri Confederate Brigade under Colonel Henry Little, and armed with four field pieces, was the first brigade in the division overseen by Price.

Battle of Pea Ridge

During the Battle of Pea Ridge on March 7 and 8, 1862, he led the 2nd Missouri Light Battery and was among the State Guard and Confederate forces killed in action. He was killed by a Union round shot while limbering up his last gun for retreat, having already withdrawn his other guns as ordered.

Death

Captain Samuel Churchill Clark died on March 8, 1862, in Pea Ridge, Arkansas. Clark's final resting place is Fairview Cemetery in Van Buren, Arkansas.

Honors

In Van Buren, Arkansas, his name is engraved on the Van Buren Confederate Monument.

References

1. Stephenson, P. D., Hughes, N. C. (1995). The Civil War Memoir of Philip Daingerfield Stephenson, D.D.: Private, Company K, 13th Arkansas Volunteer Infantry, and Loader, Piece No. 4, 5th Company, Washington Artillery, Army of Tennessee, CSA. United States: UCA Press.
2. Confederate Military History: Missouri. (1988). United States: Broadfoot.
3. ^ "Missouri Historical Review, Volume 092 Issue 1, October 1997". digital.shsmo.org. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
4. "Faces of Soldiers | Missouri History Museum". civilwarmo.org. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
5. The Confederate Veteran Magazine. (1895). United States: Blue and Grey Press.
6. Jackson, Claiborne Fox, 1806-1862, (1861-10-23) Appointment of Samuel Churchill Clark as captain of the First Battery of Artillery, 4th Division, Missouri State Guard, signed Claiborne F. Jackson, governor and commander of the Missouri State Guard, October 23, 1861. Retrieved from the Digital Public Library of America, https://mohistory.org/collections/item/A0289-30924
7. Knight, J. R. (2012). The Battle of Pea Ridge: The Civil War Fight for the Ozarks. United States: Arcadia Publishing Incorporated.
8. Faherty, W. B. (2002). Exile in Erin: A Confederate Chaplain's Story : the Life of Father John B. Bannon. United States: Missouri Historical Society Press.
9. "Clark, Samuel C." ozarkscivilwar.org. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
10. Tenney, W. J. (1866). The Military and Naval History of the Rebellion in the United States: With Biographical Sketches of Deceased Officers. United States: Appleton.
11. Johnston, W. P. (1897). The Johnstons of Salisbury: With a Brief Supplement, Concerning the Hancock, Strother and Preston Families .... United States: Press of L. Graham & son, Limited.
12. Donald L. Barnhart Jr. (7/3/2024) Man in Black’s Death at Pea Ridge Dooms Southern Prospects in Trans-Mississippi. HistoryNet Retrieved from https://www.historynet.com/man-in-blacks-death-at-pea-ridge-dooms-southern-prospects-in-trans-mississippi/.

• 1842 births
• 1862 deaths
• Confederate States Army officers
• People of Missouri in the American Civil War
• Missouri State Guard