Edward Aubrey Clark

Notes:

From FindAGrave:

Prominent statesman, banker and lawyer Edward A. Clark - a part of the Texas and national political scene for more than 60 years - died Wednesday of heart failure at St. David's Hospital. He was 86.

A memorial service for Clark - former ambassador to Australia and Texas secretary of state - will be at the Good Shepherd Episcopal Church at 2 p.m. today. A second service will be at 2 p.m. Friday at the Christ Episcopal Church in San Augustine.

Clark will be buried in San Augustine, the small East Texas town where he was born in 1906.

"I'll remember him as a man with good common sense, genuine compassion," said George Christian, White House press secretary under President Lyndon B. Johnson. "He was a loyal, outstanding lawyer. He had a rich, filling life. He touched so many lives."

U.S. Rep. Jake Pickle said of Clark , "No one shaped Texas civic, business or political action more than this man. I could rely on his friendship as I could depend on the rising sun. I have lost my second father."

Clark attended Southwestern University in Georgetown for two years and received an undergraduate degree from Tulane University in New Orleans in 1926. He married Anne Metcalfe in 1927 and received his law degree from the University of Texas in 1928.

From 1932 to 1935, Clark served as Texas assistant attorney general and from 1935 to 1937 as assistant to Gov. James Allred. He was then appointed Texas secretary of state in 1937 at age 30.

During the next quarter century, Clark co-founded the Austin lawfirm of Looney & Clark , served as a captain in the U.S. Army in World War II and was chairman of the board of Texas Commerce Bank.

The law firm later became Clark, Thomas, Winters & Newton.

"He was an uncommon man in his commitment to his friends," said Jon Newton, one of Clark 's law partners and former Texas railroad commissioner. "He had a strong vision. He represented some of the most powerful corporations."

In 1965, Johnson named Clark ambassador to Australia.

"President Johnson appointed him because he wanted someone in Australia he was particularly close to," Christian said. "He became, almost overnight, a well-known figure in that country. Clark demonstrated then that he was a lot more than a Texas lawyer."

Former U.S. Sen. Ralph Yarborough said that as ambassador, Clark "was talked about all over Australia."

"Ed Clark was such a stunning success as ambassador to Australia that his name has become synonymous with the word ambassador in Texas," Yarborough said.

"Australians have the fondest memories of him and the particular Texas style he brought to the U.S. Embassy in Canberra," said Laura Wilson, spokeswoman for the Embassy of Australia in Washington, D.C. "He is still remembered for his many efforts to forge close relations between our two countries."

Clark became an executive director of the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, D.C., in 1968 and was part of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency committees.

He had a keen interest in higher education. He served six years as a University of Texas System regent and a trustee at both Southwestern University in Georgetown and the University of Texas Law School Foundation.

He raised millions of dollars for both UT and Southwestern.

"Ambassador Clark was a great supporter of the University of Texas System," said UT System Chancellor William Cunningham. "His commitment to the fundamental principles of democracy and his engaging sense of humor helped to make him one of the state's most influential leaders.

"His understanding of Texas and particularly the needs of higher education made him an invaluable resource to the university and to the higher education community," Cunningham said.

Proud of Texas history, Clark was an honorary lifetime member of the Texas State Historical Association. "He was one of the most active members of our association. He deeply cared about Texas history," said Ron Tyler, head of the association.

"He knew the state so well that his advice would always be considered in the broader sense," Tyler said.

Clark and his wife donated a priceless 24,000 volume collection of Texana to Southwestern in 1965.

In addition to other tributes, the Edward Clark Centennial Professorship in Law at UT was established.

Clark is survived by a daughter, Leila Clark Wynn of Greenville, Miss., his sister, Kathleen Clark Fisher, and four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Weed-Corley Funeral Home of Austin is handling the services.

Published in the Austin American-Statesman 9-17-1992

Family/Spouse: Ann Elizabeth Metcalfe. Ann was born on 19 Apr 1909; died on 14 Jan 1989; was buried in San Augustine City Cemetery, San Augustine County, Texas. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]