Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-12-18

At l: 80 o'clock, Friday morning, De-
cember 14th, 1906, Hon. j. c. Clarke,
who had been a resident of Wausau for
s;xty-one years, died at his home at S09
Franklin street. The sad news of his
death passed around the city at an early
hour, Friday morning, and it was start
ling to the friends of deceased, because
it had not been known that he was SER
iously i'll Mr. Clarke had been in his
usual health-which had not been of
the best for quite a number of years
up to about a month ago, since which
time he had been confined to his home
most of the time. Thursday he walked
out of the front door onto The porch
and moved about the house some,
though he was quite feeble. In the
morning, his niece, Mrs. Chas. Clarke,
came down from Merrill and he visited
with her during the day and evening.
He retired early and shortly after, was
taken violently ill with heart trouble
and this grew worse until the end came.
Since the very beginning of our city,
the name of John g. Clarke is one that
has been familiar in every household
aud, perhaps, no man was better known
throughout the Wisconsin river valley.
He was very active in numbering for
nearly forty years. He was the owner
of one of our largest saw mills; he built
and owned the residence, corner of Fifth
and Scott streets, now owned by Pfeif-
fer & Klecker. During these years he
took an active interest in municipal,
county and state affairs and performed
service of incalculabe value to our
people, and his happy home and family
were factors in the community, which
assisted in no small degree in making
life pleasant to all who lived here in the
earlier days. Death came to his wife;
many of his children died, and heavy
reverses were experienced, and all this
weighed upon him in his declining
years.
At very early age, Mr. Clarke left
his home in England to begin the great
battle of life, and the PMoT cannot give
its readers a better idea of what he had
to contend with, than to publish brief
article, relative to his early life and the
early days of the pinery, written by
himself
"In 1S45, (only IA years old) poor
lone, ragged, destitute boy, just from
the old country. (Wales) struggled
along behind dove of cattle into the
wilds of Northern Wisconsin up to Big
Bull Falls He was no sucker. He
came with Judge Cate to work for
Abram Brawfey, on the Eau Claire. He
was an entire stranger to everyone
neither friend or relative to advise or
direct him for either veal or woe; so he
was truly waif in this wide world,
with stout heart and healthy, robust
constitution. The route travelled by
the pinery boys from Galena, after run
ming down the rivers, was by the Blue
Mounds, and the Military road to Port
age and Fort Winnebago, at which
place soldiers were garrisoned, but
were moved that fall to the Mexican
war, which was then going on. The
first / ever heard of the pinery was in
July, 1S45. A team loaded with men
drove up to Esquire Brigham's, at the
Mounds, to stop over night. The men
had paid for their ride through to Grand
Rapids. In the night the teamster
hitched up and went back, leaving the
men. In the morning when the men
got up and learned the true situation,
there was some tall swearing. Among
the crowd was Orin Maybee; always