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This builder was mayor in 1769; in 1771 he held a Fleet St. house in trust for his son (who was mayor in 1817-19) - see PA353/1/7. He was a trustee for Sir Thomas White's Loan-Money and that charity generally (1780s - 1792:- see PA101/5/28; PA101/8/243; PA101/137/7: PA202/10/12: PA50/3: PA436/7/5-11 passim: PA54/160/6,7: PA55/29/2: PA1681/7/2: PA56/138/1.VIII,IX), administering its estate in 1770 and until he died in 1801 (see PA14/4/10); as its receiver, see BA/D/A/83-112: BA/H/Q/F20/7/3. He was a Bond's Hospital trustee from 1760 (see BA/D/D/29/1: PA54/18/3,5,10; PA54/19/1; PA54/20/1; PA54/21/1,2; PA54/23/1-4; PA54/24/1; PA54/25/2,5; PA54/27/2-5; PA54/29/2; PA54/30/1-3; PA54/31/2-5; PA54/32/2-4; PA54/33/2; PA54/34/16-20). He was also a trustee of Moore's Charity (PA403/140/5; PA403/144/5: PA96/77) and of Wheatley's Loan (1791-94: PA17/32/1,2), and administered Jesson et al's bread-dole (1780 - PA17/36/10). He was a J.P. (see PA295/40/27: PA26/2 fols. 30,31: PA17/71/7), a sheriff (1757, being described as a cabinetmaker) and a city warden (1749). He was active on city council, 1761-98. See PA101/9/6: PA202/10/21. Clarke had land at Earlsdon (PA202/27.I: BA/B/P/347/5,6; BA/B/P/425/1). In 1755 Clarke bought the site of a Fleet St. house from John Gulson (q.v.) - see PA87/41: for his Fleet St. property, cf. BA/A/G/14/1 and see BA/A/G/15/1-4,11: PA54/18/5; PA54/20/1. Clarke held corporation land at Bishopgate Green (1785 - PA171/8/1), Earl's Mill Lane (1785 - BA/A/B/15/2), Swanscroft (1781-89:- BA/A/B/64/4,5: BA/A/G/23/24,25: BA/D/A/24/10: PA56/130/5(u)), Hill St. (1768 - 1801: BA/B/P/257/6-8; BA/B/P/259/1: CCA/2/3/168/29(a)), Great Pudding Croft (1779 - BA/B/P/320/16), Spon Gate (1764-84:- BA/B/P/394/2,3: PA54/142/1-3) and at Hearsall (1770 - BA/D/A/33/6), near Windmill Field (BA/D/A/48/30; BA/D/A/50/4), and at Whitmore (1763 - 1801: BA/D/A/64/10-12), Coundon (1779 - BA/D/H/23/4), Foleshill (1789 - BA/D/AW/1/10) and Onleys Leys (1786-92: BA/D/BE/11/15). Clarke occupied a Hill St. rickyard (1780 - PA454/1/4), unspecified Bablake Boys' Charity land (1774 - PA54/24/1), a garden north of Gosford St. (1783 - PA54/161/8), New St. property (1779 - PA54/201/3) and Palmer Lane premises (1789 - 1801: PA54/238/8-10). In 1777 Clarke was trustee for John Horsfall's purchase of Hill St. messuages (PA184/4/1). PA14/11/19 is a bill for the work which he did at the Freeschool in 1757. See M.J. Hinman: "Men Who Ruled Coventry, 1725 - 1780" pp.8,9,11,13,16,18,24,25,35,38,40,43,44,46 (Coventry and North Warwickshire Pamphlets Series no.14 in the City Archives searchroom library, reference 942.48). For his Coundon land, see also PA56/80/34-35. For that at Radford, PA56/130/5(n). Occupied a Smith's Leys close, Spon End, 1792 (PA56/135/1(l)). A mortgage-assignee for Cuckoo Lane property, 1772-73 (PA96/71/19.LXII,LXIII). With the schoolmaster Joseph Plant (q.v.), in 1764 Clarke arbitrated the partition of New Street premises (see PA491/22/8,11). See PA491/80/2-3. For his dealings with Southern and Craner's Charity, 1795, see PA2398/6/2/25/3. See PA1484/77/833,1220. Clarke was in 1771 trustee for the shopkeeper William Glascutt's marriage settlement (PA849/6/18-19). He sold Spon Street property with Benjamin Dunnard in 1807 - see PA849/31/1.I. CCA/2/3/193/18-21 show that between 1773 and 1782 Clarke redeveloped the site of the "Mermaid", Broadgate. Qua White's Charity feoffee, see CCA/2/3/80/13-15,17; CCA/2/3/169/11-12; CCA/2/3/170/22,25-26; CCA/2/3/803/7-12 passim; CCA/2/3/912/18.1. CCA/2/3/233/9(h),(i) show that Clarke held Spon Street ground and what he had built thereon from Holy Trinity church feoffees in 1785. He benefited under Samuel Bailye (q.v.)'s 1794 will (CCA/2/3/430/9), having been trustee of that man's 1761 marriage settlement (see CCA/2/3/34/26.I). CCA/2/3/168/21 shows that in 1787 Clarke was appointed umpire to assess part of the West Orchard Chapel estate. PA2529/1/3-7 show that Clarke was mortgagee for a Longford cottage from 1777 until his death. In 1784 Clarke bought from the corporation land on either side of the canal up the Foleshill Road, on which he built messuages such that the main one on the southern plot became the "Admiral Rodney" (later the "Prince William Henry", now (2011) converted in a builders' merchants'), and added (1788-89) the nearby "five houses" - see PA2816/4/1-4. Clarke was lessee from 1762 of Barrs Hill land (see PA2830/2/1.I).