 Clark married Lucy Harrison Norvell of Washington D.C. on January 15, 1898.Clark was appointed Governor of the District of Alaska by President William Howard Taft on May 18, 1909.The president considered the new governor to be knowledgeable about the district because Clark had prospected for gold near Nome, Alaska for a short time in 1900 and traveled through the district in both 1903 and 1906.