William Flint Clarke was born in Flint, Michigan on October 29, 1852, the son of Daniel and Mary Flint Clarke. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1873 with a Ph. B. degree. Upon graduation, he worked as a Deputy Collector with the Internal Revenue Office in Flint, Michigan (1875-1882), then as Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction (1884-1892). Clarke would later move to Jackson, working as an accountant in the Office of the Michigan Secretary of State and with the International Harvester Company. He died July 22, 1933.
Clarke married Dell DeLand, daughter of Charles V. DeLand, journalist and political figure from Jackson, Mich. DeLand is noted as one of the founders of the Republican Party of Michigan, publisher of the Jackson Citizen and Saginaw Morning Herald, officer in the 9th Michigan Infantry and 1st Michigan Sharpshooters during the Civil War.
From the guide to the Clarke family papers, 1830-1919, (Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan)
