Harvey L. Clark (October 7, 1807 – March 24, 1858) was an educator, missionary, and settler of what became Forest Grove, Oregon, United States. A native of Vermont, he moved to Oregon Country where he participated at the Champoeg Meetings and helped to found Tualatin Academy that later became Pacific University. Clark also worked for the Methodist Mission and was a chaplain for the Provisional Legislature of Oregon in 1845.
Harvey Clark was born in Chester, Vermont, on October 7, 1807. In Vermont he married Emeline, and they would have three children. In 1840, Clark, with his wife, moved to Oregon Country as a missionary to the Native Americans.
Clark traveled overland to the region, arriving in September 1840. He was an independent missionary, unaffiliated with any missionary organization such as the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. His party included mountain men, Alvin T. Smith, P. B. Littlejohn, and those two’s wives. In Oregon, Clark first taught at the Methodist Mission’s first location at Mission Bottom on the French Prairie in the Willamette Valley. He then moved to West Tuality on the Tualatin Plains, and taught there for the Mission. This location would later become the town of Forest Grove, and Clark would take a land claim at the location. In 1843, he was one of several participants from the Tualatin Valley that participated in the Champoeg Meetings. At the May 2, 1843 meeting, Clark voted for the creation of the Provisional Government of Oregon, which passed by a 52 to 50 margin.
Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin clericus meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated. Clark evolved from "clerk". First records of the name are found in 12th century England. The name has many variants.
Clark is the twenty-seventh most common surname in the United Kingdom, including placing fourteenth in Scotland. Clark is also an occasional given name, as in the case of Clark Gable.
According to the 1990 United States Census, Clark was the twenty-first most frequently encountered surname, accounting for 0.23% of the population. Notable people with the surname include:
Clark is the official team mascot of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs. He was announced on January 13, 2014 as the first official mascot in the modern history of the Cubs franchise. He was introduced that day at the Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center's pediatric developmental center along with some of the Cubs' top prospects such as number one draft pick Kris Bryant and Albert Almora, Jorge Soler, Mike Olt and Eric Jokisch. Over a dozen Cubs prospects were attending the Cubs' Rookie Development Program that week. The Cubs become the 27th team in Major League Baseball to have a mascot, leaving the Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees as the remaining franchises without mascots. According to the Cubs' press release, Clark is a response to fan demands (expressed via surveys and interviews) for more kid-friendly elements at Wrigley Field Cubs games to keep pace with games in other cities that have more to offer youth fans.
He is a "young, friendly Cub" who will wear a backwards baseball cap and greet fans entering Wrigley Field, which is located at the corner of Clark Street (for which he is named) and Addison Street. North Clark Street borders the third base side of Wrigley Field. According to the Cubs, the fictional character Clark is descended from Joa, the franchise's original live Bears mascot in 1916.
Clark is a common surname.
Clark may also refer to: