Benjamin Hutchinson Clover
Politician. Populist. Born: December 22, 1837, Franklin County, Ohio. Died: December 30, 1899, Douglass, Kansas. Served in U.S. House of Representatives, 3rd District: March 4, 1891, to March 3, 1893.
Another one of the five successful People's Party candidate for Congress in 1890, Ben Clover was born December 22, 1837, in Franklin County, Ohio, and removed to Kansas in 1871, locating at Cambridge, Cowley County, where he was involved with agriculture and served as a member of the board of school commissioners (1873-1888). A leader of the Kansas Farmers' Alliance, of which he was the first state president and later a vice-president of the national (elected twice to both positions), Clover announced prior to the first Populist state convention (held at Topeka, August 13, 1890), that he would not be a candidate of governor (July 30, 1890); many, including William A. Peffer, had considered him the logical choice to head the state ticket. The convention chose John F. Willits of Jefferson County instead, and Clover accepted his party's nomination to run for the 3rd District congressional seat-the former lost, the latter won. But Clover served only one term in the U.S. Congress (the Fifty-second, March 4, 1891-March 3, 1893), choosing not to be a candidate for renomination in 1892. On December 30, 1899, he committed suicide at his home near Douglass, Butler County.
Entry: Clover, Benjamin Hutchinson
Author: Kansas Historical Society
Author information: The Kansas Historical Society is a state agency charged with actively safeguarding and sharing the state's history.
Date Created: June 2011
Date Modified: May 2012
The author of this article is solely responsible for its content.
