Irene Ann (Crawford) Clark
March 15, 1910 — Nov. 19, 2007
Jamestown resident Irene Ann (Crawford) Clark died Nov. 19 at a Sonora hospital. She was 97.
Mrs. Clark was born in the gold mining town of Scott Bar, Siskiyou County, the only child to Carl Nesbitt Crawford and Alice Regina Andrews. She had many ancestors who were gold seekers, merchants and the earliest builders of the community.
When she was 7 years old, her family moved to Fort Jones, Siskiyou County, where she received the balance of her elementary school education. Her father's work then took the family to Yreka, Siskiyou County, where she began high school and then to San Jose where she graduated from Campbell High School in 1928. She received a scholarship to San Jose Secretarial School and found herself employed by the school before she graduated. She then worked at Hardcastle Brothers for many years.
She met her future husband in the bookkeeping class they shared at Campbell High School. They married on July 18, 1929 in Hollister, San Benito County, and moved to Willow Glen, Santa Clara County. She lived there until moving to Jamestown in December 2006.
Mrs. Clark loved adventure. Before her family's move to San Jose, her grandfather, Lowell Crawford, taught her to drive a car and she had her first biplane ride over a field near Montague, Siskiyou County. Her first train ride, from Yreka to San Francisco, was when the family moved to join her father in San Jose. Mrs. Clark traveled with May Concklin, her best friend from high school, throughout Europe, the East Coast and on cruises to Alaska. In her mid-70s, she took up golf.
She was a member of St. Paul's Methodist Church, the California Pioneers of Santa Clara County and Velitas Sorority. She also was a 45-year member of San Jose Chapter No. 31 Order of the Eastern Star.
She was initiated into the Order of the Eastern Star in 1962 and held numerous offices as well as serving as worthy matron in 1975. She opened her home for many chapter events. She was a member of the Past Matrons Association and a worker in the Memorial Cancer dressing project.
Mrs. Clark was preceded in death by her husband of 45 years, Elburr George Clark; and her son Elburr George Jr. who died at age 3.
She is survived by her children and their spouses, Barbara and Skip Hill of San Jose, Arlene and Sam Coomer of Sunsites, Ariz., Ronald and Linda Clark of Twain Harte and Douglas Clark of San Jose; eight grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
A celebration of life will be held 1:30 p.m. Dec. 4 at San Jose Masonic Center, 2500 Masonic Dr., San Jose.
A private internment will be at Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose. |