Alexander Clark
Alexander G. Clark (February 25, 1826 – May 31, 1891) was an
African-American businessman and activist who served as
United States Ambassador to Liberia in 1890–1891, where he died in office. In 1867 Clark sued to gain admission for his daughter to attend a local public school in
Muscatine, Iowa. The case of ''
Clark v. Board of School Directors'' achieved a constitutional ruling for integration from the
Iowa Supreme Court in 1868, 86 years before the United States Supreme Court decision of ''
Brown v. Board of Education'' (1954). He was a prominent leader in winning a state constitutional amendment that gained the right for African Americans in Iowa to vote (1868). Active in church, freemasonry, and the Republican Party, he became known for his speaking skills and was nicknamed "the Colored Orator of the West." He earned a law degree and became co-owner and editor of ''
The Conservator'' in Chicago. His body was returned from Liberia in 1892 and buried in Muscatine, where his house has been preserved.
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