Sophia (Sophy) Gertrude McCreary, of Erie, Pennsylvania, was the daughter of Brevet Brigadier General David B. McCreary and Annette Gunnison McCreary. She attended Miss Haines' School in New York City before marrying lawyer Henry Alden Clark in 1878 and returning to Erie.
Sophy's father, David B. McCreary was born 27 February 1826 in Mill Creek Township to Joseph F. and Lydia McCreary. He was one of nine children in a large farming family. McCreary attended Erie Academy and Washington College, after which he served as both a teacher and principal. He also studied law and began practicing in 1853, entering into a partnership with J.B. Johnson. He was appointed as an aide to Governor James Pollock in 1855. McCreary took a break from his law career at the outbreak of the Civil War, serving in the Wayne Guards, as a lieutenant in the Three-months Regiment, and eventually helping to organize the 145th Regiment in 1862. As a lieutenant-colonel, McCreary fought with the regiment at the battles of Antietam and Fredericksburg before being captured at Cold Harbor in May of 1864. Near the end of the war McCreary was appointed to the rank of Brevet Brigadier General. McCreary returned to law after the war. He was elected to the State Legislature in 1865 and the State Senate in 1888, also serving as adjutant general in 1867, State Manager of the Dixmount Asylum, and chairman of the Judiciary General Committee. McCreary married Annette Gunnison in 1851, and was the father of Sophy McCreary Clark and Wirt McCreary. He died in 1906.
Sophy McCreary married Henry Alden Clark on 18 July 1878. Clark was born in 1850 in Harborcreek to Chauncey and Emeline Clark. He attended Erie Academy, State Normal School in Edinboro, Pennsylvania, Willoughby Collegiate Institute in Ohio, and Erie Central High School. Clark enrolled at Harvard College in 1870 and Harvard Law School in 1875. He began practicing soon after, serving as a partner in several different firms including the Edison Company. Clark was an active member of the Erie community and government throughout his life. He served as a trustee of the Erie Academy, bought the Erie Gazette in 1890, and was appointed chairman of the Republican City Committee and County Committee in 1890. He and his wife had two children, Sophy Annette and Henry McCreary. Clark died in 1944.
From the description of McCreary-Clark Family letters, 1865-1901. (Pennsylvania State University Libraries). WorldCat record id: 655316367
