Clark Conkling, of Lyons, Kan., is well known to the citizens of Rice county and surrounding territory through the columns of his paper, the "Lyons Republican," one of the vigorous weeklies of the state, of which he has been owner and editor thirty-two years. He became a Kansan in 1879, when he established the paper with which he so long has been connected and which he has made a power for good in his community.

Mr. Conkling is an Ohio man, born near Sharonville, Hamilton county, Sept. 9, 1851, of English and German descent. This branch of the Conkling family originated in America with ancestors who settled on Long Island in Colonial days. Later descendants went to Maryland, thence to Pennsylvania, and subsequently to Ohio, where the parents and paternal grandparents of the subject were born. William M. Conkling, the father, early in life learned the blacksmith's trade, which he followed for a time, but later turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, which thereafter remained his occupation. he married Miss Elizabeth Drake Glenn, who was born in Hamilton county, Ohio. Of this union were born six children, all of whom are deceased except Clark and Edmond G., who resides in Topeka, Kan. The parents also have passed away, each having reached the ripe old age of eighty-one years. The father was a Republican in politics and an elder in the Presbyterian church. A man of upright, honorable life, and of honest heart, his life was consistent with his creed and he commanded the inviolable confidence and esteem of all who knew him. The paternal grandmother of Mr. Conkling was a Miss Marsh, who died in Ohio.

Clark Conkling was reared in Ohio and there received his education, in the Normal School at Lebanon and the Western Reserve College at Cleveland. In 1873 he left his old home and associates for the West, removing to Colorado, where he was employed in a store for a time. in 1879 he came to Lyons, Kan., where he established the "Lyons Republican," which he has ever made a potent influence in promoting the industrial, civic, and moral progress of his community, thereby contributing as well to the advancement of the whole state.

At Lyons, Kan., April 2, 1884, Mr. Conkling wedded Miss Laura Stone, a native of Illinois and daughter of D. F. Stone. Mr. and Mrs. Conkling have six children—four daughters and two sons—Yetta A., Enid, Clark, Glen S.. Catherine, and Gerald M. Glen S., the elder son, is engaged in publishing a paper at La Salle, Col. Mrs. Conkling is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, is an ideal wife and mother, and possesses rare personal qualities of friendship. Mr. Conkling is identified fraternally with the Knights of Pythias, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He has always given an unswerving allegiance to the Republican party and strongly supports its principles and policies through the columns of his paper. During President Benjamin Harrison's administration he was appointed postmaster at Lyons, in which office he served with credit and made a record for efficiency. He is a man of pleasant personal characteristics, social, genial and courteous, which qualities have rendered him a popular associate, both in business affairs and in social relations. As a useful, worthy, and respected citizen, none in Lyons stands higher than Mr. Conkling.