Alvan Clark

Alvan Clark (March 8, 1804 – August 19, 1887), born in Ashfield, Massachusetts, the descendant of a Cape Cod whaling family of English ancestry, was an American astronomer and telescope maker. He was a portrait painter and engraver (ca.1830s-1850s), and at the age of 40 became involved in telescope making. Using glass blanks made by Chance Brothers of Birmingham and Feil-Mantois of Paris, his firm Alvan Clark & Sons ground lenses for refracting telescopes, including the largest in the world at the time: the 18.5-inch (470 mm) at Dearborn Observatory at the Old University of Chicago (the lens was originally intended for Ole Miss), the two 26-inch (660 mm) telescopes at the United States Naval Observatory and McCormick Observatory, the 30-inch (760 mm) at Pulkovo Observatory (destroyed in the Siege of Leningrad; only the lens survives), the 36-inch (910 mm) telescope at Lick Observatory (still third-largest) and later the 40-inch (1,000 mm) at Yerkes Observatory, which remains the largest successful refracting telescope in the world. One of Clark's sons, Alvan Graham Clark, discovered the dim companion of Sirius. His other son was George Bassett Clark; both sons were partners in the firm.

Clark

Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin clericus meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated. Clark evolved from "clerk". First records of the name are found in 12th century England. The name has many variants.

Clark is the twenty-seventh most common surname in the United Kingdom, including placing fourteenth in Scotland. Clark is also an occasional given name, as in the case of Clark Gable.

According to the 1990 United States Census, Clark was the twenty-first most frequently encountered surname, accounting for 0.23% of the population. Notable people with the surname include:

Clark (mascot)

Clark is the official team mascot of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs. He was announced on January 13, 2014 as the first official mascot in the modern history of the Cubs franchise. He was introduced that day at the Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center's pediatric developmental center along with some of the Cubs' top prospects such as number one draft pick Kris Bryant and Albert Almora, Jorge Soler, Mike Olt and Eric Jokisch. Over a dozen Cubs prospects were attending the Cubs' Rookie Development Program that week. The Cubs become the 27th team in Major League Baseball to have a mascot, leaving the Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees as the remaining franchises without mascots. According to the Cubs' press release, Clark is a response to fan demands (expressed via surveys and interviews) for more kid-friendly elements at Wrigley Field Cubs games to keep pace with games in other cities that have more to offer youth fans.

Description

He is a "young, friendly Cub" who will wear a backwards baseball cap and greet fans entering Wrigley Field, which is located at the corner of Clark Street (for which he is named) and Addison Street. North Clark Street borders the third base side of Wrigley Field. According to the Cubs, the fictional character Clark is descended from Joa, the franchise's original live Bears mascot in 1916.

Clark (disambiguation)

Clark is a common surname.

Clark may also refer to:

Places

Antarctica

Philippines

United States

Education

Other uses