# John Hessin Clarke *American lawyer and judge; associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1916–1922* John Hessin Clarke (September 18, 1857 – March 22, 1945) was an Ohio lawyer and federal judge. He sat as an associate justice on the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] from 1916 until 1922.[^1] Clarke was a Democrat. He went from part-ownership of a Youngstown newspaper and railroad counsel work in Cleveland into progressive politics. He lost a 1903 contest for the [[United States Senate]], and President Woodrow Wilson appointed him to the federal district bench in 1914.[^2] He joined the Supreme Court in 1916 and left it in 1922. In October 1922 he became president of the League of Nations Non-Partisan Association.[^1][^2] This account rests on the cached Wikipedia article. The evidence pack holds no primary record of Clarke's appointments, confirmations or opinions. The pack's Minnesota-labeled rows concern a different person, so they are not used here.[^1] ## Early life Clarke was born in New Lisbon, Ohio. His father, John Clarke (1814–1884), was a Quaker who had emigrated from County Antrim, Ireland, and practiced as a lawyer and judge in the United States. His mother was Melissa Hessin. Of their three children he was the youngest and the only son.[^2] After New Lisbon High School he went to Western Reserve College, where he joined Delta Kappa Epsilon. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1877. He did not go to law school. Instead he read law with his father and passed the bar examination cum laude in 1878.[^2] Clarke practiced in New Lisbon for two years and then settled in Youngstown. There he bought a half-share in the *Youngstown Vindicator*, a Democratic paper. His articles in it argued against the power of corporate monopolies and for civil-service reform.[^2] In 1894 he tried to block Calvin S. Brice's renomination as the party's Senate candidate, and failed. He did succeed in working against a Republican mayoral candidate in Youngstown who belonged to the American Protective Association.[^2] In 1896 he opposed William Jennings Bryan's presidential nomination and left the Democratic Party. He then took part in the "Gold Bug" convention at Indianapolis, which nominated Senator John M. Palmer.[^2] ## Progressive politician Shortly after the 1896 election Clarke moved to Cleveland. He became a partner in Williamson and Cushing, a firm that represented corporate and railroad interests. He later succeeded senior partner Samuel W. Williamson as general counsel for the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad.[^2] He stayed active in Democratic politics during these years. He gave up earlier positions such as states' rights and took up the progressive program. Cleveland mayor Tom L. Johnson, a friend, helped him regain standing in the state party after his break with Bryan.[^2] In 1903 Johnson took control of the Ohio Democratic Party, with Clarke's support. That August the party convention nominated Clarke for the United States Senate. The Ohio General Assembly instead chose the Republican incumbent, Mark Hanna, by 115 votes to 25.[^2] Clarke then turned mainly to legal work. He withdrew from the Williamson and Cushing partnership in 1907 and returned to politics.[^2] ## Judicial career ### Federal judge On July 15, 1914, while Clarke was in the middle of a primary campaign, President Wilson appointed him to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. The seat had been vacated by William Louis Day's resignation.[^2] Wilson and Attorney General [[James Clark McReynolds]] both judged that the court's backlog called for a "first-rate appointment". They regarded Clarke's reputation at the Ohio bar as evidence of "decided ability".[^2] Wilson also wanted someone who could later be nominated to the Supreme Court. After sixteen years of Republican presidents, few Democrats sat on the federal bench.[^2] The Senate confirmed Clarke on July 21, 1914, and he received his commission that day.[^2] On the district court he cleared the backlogged docket. Of the 662 suits he tried, five were reversed, and none of those reversals concerned the admission of evidence.[^2] ### Associate Justice In June 1916 Associate Justice [[Charles Evans Hughes]] resigned from the Supreme Court to accept the Republican presidential nomination. Wilson's first choice for the seat was Attorney General Thomas W. Gregory. Gregory declined and proposed Clarke.[^2] Newton Baker, Wilson's Secretary of War and a close friend of Clarke's, then spoke with Clarke. The cached text breaks off at that point and gives no nomination or confirmation dates.[^2] Clarke served on the Court from 1916 to 1922.[^1] ## Later years Three days after submitting his resignation, Clarke told an interviewer about a new cause: persuading Americans that the United States should join the League of Nations. At that point the Senate had rejected the Versailles Treaty, and the anti-League Republican Warren G. Harding had been elected president in 1920.[^2] In October 1922 Clarke became president of the League of Nations Non-Partisan Association, which was modeled on the British League of Nations Union.[^2] The Association's spending soon exceeded its funding, and Clarke reorganized it in June 1923. The public support its founders had expected did not materialize. The leadership scaled back its aims and concentrated on American entry into the World Court.[^2] Clarke died on March 22, 1945.[^1] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia, *John Hessin Clarke* (revision 1380335931, retrieved 2026-10-26) — birth and death dates; associate justice of the Supreme Court, 1916–1922. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hessin_Clarke [^2]: Wikipedia, *John Hessin Clarke* (revision 1380335931, retrieved 2026-10-26) — sections "Early life", "Progressive politician", "Judicial career" and "Later years": family, education, Youngstown and Cleveland career, 1903 Senate contest, 1914 district-court appointment and confirmation, 1916 vacancy, League of Nations Non-Partisan Association. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hessin_Clarke