Clifford, Jr., Benjamin

Born: 1800-12-13 Rhode Island

Died: 1858-06-17 New Orleans, Louisiana

Benjamin Clifford Jr., was a grocer, merchant, and postmaster. In December 1828, he married Sophia Larned in his native state. In the late 1820s or early 1830s, Clifford moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he engaged in business. In late 1835 to early 1836, he moved to Madison County, Illinois. In February 1836, Clifford purchased approximately forty-three acres of public land near Fosterburg, northwest of Alton. In March 1836, he opened a grocery business in Alton. A Whig in politics, Clifford served on the Madison County Whig Party Executive Committee in 1838, and was a delegate to the Whig State Convention in 1839. From April 1843 to January 1845, Clifford served as postmaster of Quincy, Illinois. In 1850, he was a merchant living in Quincy. In the 1850s, Clifford and his family moved to New Orleans, Louisiana.

Rhode Island Births, 1800-1855, Rhode Island State Archives, Providence, RI; James Newell Arnold, Rhode Island Vital Extracts, 1636–1850 (Providence, RI: Narragansett Historical, 1891–1912), 7:515; Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 12 March 1836, 4:3; 21 April 1838, 3:6; 11 October 1839, 2:5; Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales, Madison County, 324:165, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971, NARA Microfilm Publication, M841, 145 rolls, Records of the Post Office Department, RG 28, 1832-1844, 12B:472; 1845-1855, 18:2, National Archives Building, Washington, DC; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Ward 2, Quincy, Adams County, IL, 274; Louisiana Statewide Death Index, 1819-1964 , Secretary of State, Division of Archives, Records Management, and History, Baton Rouge, LA.