William Clark House

William Clark House

Clark Mansion

North Ward Educational and Cultural Center

The William Clark House is located near Branch Brook park, in the Forrest Hills/North Ward part of Newark. Completed in 1880, this mansion served as the residence of the apparel magnate William Clark of the Clark Thread Company of Newark, who lived in the mansion until his death in 1902. This mansion represents one of the great earliest Forest Hill mansions and was designed in the Queen Anne style by the renowned architect, William Halsey Wood.
The entire structure sits on a partially raised basement, articulated on the exterior by ashlar masonry. The upper portions of the facades are made of red brick. The typical red brick walls monotony is broken by abundant stone accents, trims, quoins, decorative reliefs and beltcourses.
The main entrance is set beneath a gabled, central pavilion that projects from the center of the front façade. Marble columns support the portico-like, first-story portion of the pavilion.
The mansion does not spare the display of wealth and opulent materials on the interior and exterior. On the interior, the house displays an outstanding array of woodwork and plaster ornamentation.

1873-1880

extant

Although the exterior has been largely preserved intact, the interior has undergone some changes. The main block suffered damages due to a fire that destroyed part of its roof, the third floor and the main stair.
This mansion is a remarkable example of adaptive reuse. It became a private school in 1925 and it continued this function until 1973 when it was purchased by the North Ward Center, a non-profit organization.

Files:

National Register of Historic Places, William Clark House, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, National Register #77000863

Books:

Cunningham, John T. Newark. Newark, N.J: New Jersey Historical Society, 1966.

Gordon, Mark W., and Anthony Schuman, editors. Newark Landmark Treasures: A Guide to the Landmark Buildings, Parks, Public Art & Historic Districts in New Jersey’s Metropolis. Newark Preservation and Landmarks Committee, 2016, p. 5.

Longendyck, Catharine, and Kathleen P. Galop. Forest Hill. Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2014, p. 30-31.

Miller, R. Craig, The Domestic Architecture of William Halsey Wood, University of Delaware, 1972.

Shaw, William H., History of Essex and Hudson Counties, New Jersey, Everts and Peck, Philadelphia, Pa., 1884.

Young, James R., Textile Leaders of the South, R.L. Bryam Company, Columbia, South Carolina, 1963.

Articles:

Star Ledger, April 18, 1975, (Historic Newark Landmarks will Star in T.V. Documentary) by Joan Babbage.

Queen Anne