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J. Reuben Clark Jr., the Grantsville Farm Boy Who Became an Ambassador

Born on a Grantsville, Utah, farm, Clark served as Under Secretary of State and ambassador to Mexico, then spent 28 years in the LDS First Presidency.

Who Was J. Reuben Clark Jr.?

Joshua Reuben Clark Jr. is better known as an attorney, diplomat and church leader than as a cattleman, and that is exactly why he is an unusual entry in a cattle hall of fame. According to Wikipedia, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners in 1963 as a farmer, cattleman and politician. The assignment for this site lists 1962, so sources differ on the year.

He was born in Grantsville, Utah Territory, on September 1, 1871, and died in Salt Lake City on October 6, 1961, at age 90.

Early Life on a Grantsville Farm

Clark was raised on a farm in Grantsville and did farm chores as a boy. Grantsville sits in Tooele County, west of Salt Lake City, in the grazing and farming country along the Great Salt Lake desert.

The sources reviewed do not say how many acres or head of stock his family ran. They do show that the farm was the foundation of his early life before he left for school and a legal career.

From University of Utah to Columbia Law

The Utah History Encyclopedia records that Clark graduated first in his class from the University of Utah in 1898 and married Luacine Annetta Savage that September. From 1898 to 1903 he taught and served as an administrator at high school and college levels.

He earned an LL.B. from Columbia Law School in 1906, then became assistant solicitor of the State Department. He was also an assistant professor of law at George Washington University from 1906 to 1908.

Diplomat: Solicitor, Under Secretary and Ambassador

Clark served as Solicitor of the State Department from 1910 to 1913. In World War I he was a major in the Judge Advocate General's reserve and received the Distinguished Service Medal.

President Calvin Coolidge appointed him Under Secretary of State, a post he held from August 1928 to June 1929. He then served as U.S. Ambassador to Mexico from November 1930 to February 1933.

Church Leadership for 28 Years

On April 6, 1933, Clark was sustained as second counselor to church president Heber J. Grant. He was ordained an apostle in October 1934 and became first counselor that month. He served under Grant, George Albert Smith and David O. McKay, a total of about 28 years in the First Presidency, longer than any man who was not church president.

The Anderson-Clark Farmstead in Grantsville

The tangible link between Clark and Utah farm country is the farm he bought in 1941. According to a history page for the farm, its barns and farm buildings were built in the 1880s by Charles L. Anderson, a Swedish immigrant to Grantsville. Clark, who grew up nearby, bought the property in 1941 and built the red-brick home that stands there now.

The farm is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The basement now holds a Daughters of the Utah Pioneers museum, and the upstairs houses a preschool.

The Key to Clark's Success

Clark's success was professional, not ranch-based, so the lessons below come from his career record rather than from cattle management details that are not documented.

He appears in a cattle hall of fame because the Hall of Great Westerners counted farming and cattle among his roles, and because he stayed tied to the Grantsville land.

  • He finished first in his class at the University of Utah and then earned a Columbia law degree.
  • He moved from teaching and administration into government legal work at the State Department.
  • He accepted senior posts under two presidents, Coolidge and Hoover, as Under Secretary and then ambassador.
  • He returned to farm country in 1941 by buying the Grantsville farm near where he grew up.
  • He served in church leadership across three presidencies.

Legacy and Visiting the Farm

Clark's legacy spans diplomacy, church history and Utah agriculture. The Grantsville farm remains the place where those threads meet. The Hall of Great Westerners overview lists the other honorees.

For more on Western farming and ranching, see the ranching pages on farm.FM, or read a farm.FM story on Utah farm history.

Timeline

  1. 1871Born September 1 in Grantsville, Utah Territory
  2. 1898Graduates first in his class at the University of Utah; marries Luacine Savage
  3. 1906Earns an LL.B. from Columbia Law School; joins the State Department
  4. 1910Becomes Solicitor of the State Department
  5. 1928Appointed Under Secretary of State
  6. 1930Becomes U.S. Ambassador to Mexico
  7. 1933Sustained as second counselor in the LDS First Presidency
  8. 1941Buys the farm in Grantsville
  9. 1961Dies October 6 in Salt Lake City

Frequently asked questions

Who was J. Reuben Clark Jr.?

J. Reuben Clark Jr. (1871-1961) was a Utah-born attorney, U.S. Under Secretary of State and ambassador to Mexico who later served 28 years in the LDS First Presidency.

Was J. Reuben Clark a cattleman?

The Hall of Great Westerners honored him as a farmer, cattleman and politician. The sources reviewed do not detail his cattle holdings, but he grew up on a Grantsville farm and bought one in 1941.

Where is the Clark farm in Grantsville?

The Anderson-Clark Farmstead is in Grantsville, Utah. Clark bought it in 1941 and built the brick home there. It is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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