Wise County Messenger (Online Edition)
http://www.wcmessenger.com/video/community/saddlemaker06-24-2007.php
Tradition guides saddle maker
By Brandon Evans| Published Sunday, June 24, 2007
Handcrafted bits, buckles and spurs glimmer as the morning sun spills into the crowded workroom of Boyd-based artisan Ladd Clark.
Clark fits the form of the classic cowboy. He's tall and lean with a thick gray mustache. Intense eyes of amber and steel blue light up when he talks about his craft.
"He's one of the few men that makes saddles the old way," said Harold Johnson, a Boyd rancher and one of Clark's clients. "He does excellent work."
Clark used to tour the circuit as a bronco rider.
"I grew up in Fort Worth and I used to rodeo for a livin'," Clark said in a quick-speaking North Texan accent. "I was a bronco rider, but I got too old for bronco ridin' and I started doin' this.
"It's a lot like brain surgery, but you earn a lot of money for bein' a brain surgeon. After more than 40 years of makin' saddles, I still don't make much money."
Clark worked for several saddle makers before starting his own business. He lived and worked for a long time at a ranch between Fredericksburg and Johnson City. Six years ago he moved to his current shop, Ladd Clark's Saddles and Cowboy Gear, in downtown Boyd.
His shop is a veritable museum. Countless cowboy memorabilia and gear line the walls and coat every available space.
He also used to work as a carpenter. Now he mainly makes custom saddles and rebuilds old ones. He also crafts other leatherworks such as chaps and reins and bridles and hackamores. He even creates leather Bible covers for some clients.
Clark holds fast to tradition. He insists that all the parts that go into his saddle be hand made. He even does his stitching on an antique, foot-pumped sewing machine.
"He's sort of like one of the last of a dying breed," said Jim Anthis, a resident of Alvord and a visitor of Clark's shop.
Every ingredient he pours into his saddles are made in the U.S.
A Burleson craftsman, Darrel Slinkard, makes all of the trees for Clark's saddles. The trees are made from bull hide and ponderosa pine. All his leather comes from one of only two tanneries left in the country.
Since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, the number of tanneries has skyrocketed in Mexico as most American cattle ranchers ship hides south of the border for tanning.
All of Clark's metalwork also come from nearby craftsmen as well.
"I like building saddles the most of anything do," Clark said. "But it is the least payoff for the most work. If I got minimum wage for the number of hours I put into makin' a saddle, I'd be rich."
He said the cost of materials has gone up dramatically since he first started. He points to a saddle with an ornate design and an original brand on the side. It's a saddle he is making for a veterinarian in Oklahoma.
"The materials for this saddle cost $1,200," he said. "They used to only be $80 when I started."
Clark laments the steady disappearance of saddle making in America.
He said most people will purchase the less expensive foreign saddles.
When he worked in the 1960s, he said he had 30 custom saddles on order. Now, he has three.
"It's a dyin' art," he said. "There are going to be less and less every day now that they make most of the materials overseas."
But he said a saddle must be handcrafted for the rider and the horse. One can't just buy some random saddle and expect it to fit the horse and rider perfectly.
"You need to talk to the horse owner about their horse," Clark said. "Most people don't even know what they want."
After learning about a client, Clark then begins to form an image in his mind of what the finished saddle will look like. He also takes the comfort of the steed into account.
"I try to make the saddle as comfortable as possible for the horse. Most people don't understand this, but it has to fit the horse just right."
Clark turned 60 last month and he expects to keep on making saddles as long as his hands still work. Although the saddle industry continues to change with the rise of globalization, Clark clings to the original way as the sun descends on an era.
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http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/07/21/latimes.texas/index.html
CNN Archives
latimes.com: Texas pride is put to the campaign test
By Faye Fiore/Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 21, 2000
Web posted at: 11:59 a.m. EDT (1559 GMT)
latimes.com WASHINGTON (Los Angeles Times) -- When God was handing out bluster and bravado, Texas must have been first in line because everything in Texas is bigger and better than anywhere else.
Just ask a Texan. ................
......................The average income here is about $8 an hour. What people can't buy, they barter. Robyn Henderson, editor and publisher of the Johnson City Record Courier, has traded advertising space for eggs. The local doctor once swapped an office visit for an oil painting.
That sort of determination is what helped pull Texas out of its recession, but it also holds people back. A local fund for indigent health services is rarely tapped, Henderson said, because folks don't like handouts.
Some do without, such as Ladd Clark, a 52-year-old self-employed saddle maker who built a house on 13 acres for himself and his three dogs. They live fine, except that he is a diabetic and one of the millions of Texans with no health insurance.
He doesn't tell that story willingly; it dribbles out over a barbecue lunch at Ronnie's, where, locals say, "every hard-workin' boy ends up at one time or another." But what is essentially Texan abouthis situation--Clarks thinks he probably needs insulin but can't afford it--is that he does not expect anybody to help him, least of all the government.
"If I can't get it, I can't get it," he says.
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http://www.legacy.com/dfw/Obituaries.asp?Page=LifeStoryPrint&PersonID=94638689
Samuel Clark
1947 - 2007
Samuel Clark, 60, a skilled craftsman, passed away Friday, Sept. 14, 2007.
Graveside service: noon Tuesday in Greenwood Memorial Park.
Samuel was born May 22, 1947, to Floyd and Mamie Clark.
Survivors: Brothers, Ronald Clark and Jim Hall; three nephews; and a host of other family and friends.
Published in the Star-Telegram on 9/18/2007.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrHexu5fEAI&feature=player_embedded#at=24
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Ladd Clark Saddle & Tack
124 W Rock Island Ave # 144
Boyd, TX 76023
940-433-8227
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U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1about Samuel Ladd Clark
Name: Samuel Ladd Clark
Birth Date: 22 May 1947
Address: PO Box 644, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0644
[PO Box 99, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0099 (1995)] 
[PO Box 220, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0220] 
[PO Box 99, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0099 (1993)] 

Texas Birth Index 1903-1997
Name: Samuel Ladd Clark
Date of Birth: 22 May 1947
Gender: Male
Birth County: Tarrant
Father's name: Floyd Thomas Clark
Mother's name: Mamie Inez Carr
Roll Number: 1947_0003
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Social Security Death Index
Name: Samuel Ladd Clark
SSN: 458-78-0763
Last Residence: 76023  Boyd, Wise, Texas
Born: 22 May 1947
Died: 14 Sep 2007
State (Year) SSN issued: Texas (1963)

"Some do without, such as Ladd Clark, a 52-year-old self-employed saddle maker who built a house on 13 acres for himself and his three dogs. They live fine, except that he is a diabetic and one of the millions of Texans with no health insurance.
He doesn't tell that story willingly; it dribbles out over a barbecue lunch at Ronnie's, where, locals say, "every hard-workin' boy ends up at one time or another." But what is essentially Texan about his situation--Clark thinks he probably needs insulin but can't afford it--is that he does not expect anybody to help him, least of all the government.
"If I can't get it, I can't get it," he says."

Name: Samuel Ladd Clark
Birth Date: 22 May 1947
Address: PO Box 644, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0644
[PO Box 99, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0099 (1995)] 
[PO Box 220, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0220] 
[PO Box 99, Johnson City, TX, 78636-0099 (1993)] 

• Married: 11 JAN 1968 in Tarrant County, Texas
• Note: ¹⁵
• Divorced: 21 SEP 1970 in Freestone County, Texas ¹⁶

1. Living

• Married: 7 OCT 1972 in Tarrant County, Texas ¹⁷
• Divorced: 15 APR 1976 in Tarrant County, Texas ¹⁷

1. Living

1. Abbrev: Texas Birth Index 1903-1997
   Title: Texas. Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997. Texas: Texas Department of State Health Services. Microfiche., Texas Birth Index 1903-1997 (Ancestry.com. Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005.)
   Note:
   
   Repository:
   Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
   
   Page: Roll Number: 1947_0003
   Quality: 2
2. Abbrev: Social Security Death Index
   Title: Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Social Security Administration., Social Security Death Index (Ancestry.com. Social Security Death Index [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007)
   Note:
   
   Repository:
   Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
   
   Quality: 2
3. Abbrev: CNN.com
   Title: "," CNN.com, ; online archives (http://edition.cnn.com/ : accessed ).
   Repository:
   Name: RAS Private Collection (downloaded digital image)
   
   Page: Faye Fiore; Texas pride is put to the campaign test; 21 July 2000; direct quote from Samuel Ladd Clark, discussing his diabetes; accessed, downloaded; 7 July 2007; LA Times.com
   Quality: 3
4. Abbrev: Personal knowledge
   Title: Personal knowledge of the author, RAS, [address for private use].
   Repository:
   Name: RAS (personal knowledge)
   
   Quality: 3
5. Abbrev: Arlington Heights High School- Class of 1965
   Title: "AHHS 1965 - Fort Worth, Texas," database, Sue Hubbard Tarlton, AHHS 1965 - Fort Worth, Texas (http://ahhs1965.ning.com/: accessed ), .
   Page: accessed, downloaded; 25 May 2011; Ronnie and Ladd Clark both listed as deceased members of Class of 1965
   Quality: 2
6. Abbrev: Fort Worth Star-Telegram
   Title: , Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas, .
   Repository:
   Name: RAS Private Collection (original document)
   
   Page: memorial tribute; 30 September 2007; Page 9B; "...managing 3800 acres on the old LBJ Ranch in Johnson City, Texas."
   Quality: 3
7. Abbrev: Personal knowledge
   Title: Personal knowledge of the author, RAS, [address for private use].
   Repository:
   Name: RAS (personal knowledge)
   
   Page: June 1995 visit
   Quality: 3
8. Abbrev: U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1
   Title: Ancestry.com, "U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1," database, Ancestry.com, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com: accessed ), ; citing Voter Registration Lists, Public Record Filings, Historical Residential Records, and Other Household Database Listings.
   Page: accessed; 25 May 2011; Samuel Ladd Clark post office box numbers
   Quality: 2
9. Abbrev: Fort Worth Star-Telegram
   Title: , Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas, .
   Repository:
   Name: RAS Private Collection (original document)
   
   Page: Samuel Clark; 18 September 2007; online edition
   Quality: 2
10. Abbrev: Wise County Messenger
    Title: , Wise County Messenger, Decatur, Texas, .
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (downloaded digital image)
    
    Page: Samuel Ladd Clark; 20 September 2007; online edition
    Quality: 2
11. Abbrev: Fort Worth Star-Telegram
    Title: , Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas, .
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (original document)
    
    Page: Samuel Ladd Clark; 30 September 2007; Page 9B; memorial tribute
    Quality: 3
12. Abbrev: Greenwood Cemetery
    Title: , Greenwood Cemetery, Fort Worth (Tarrant), Texas.
    Page: Samuel L Clark; original digital photograph taken by RAS
    Quality: 3
13. Abbrev: Social Security Death Index
    Title: Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Social Security Administration., Social Security Death Index (Ancestry.com. Social Security Death Index [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007)
    Note:
    
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
    
    Page: Samuel Ladd Clark
    Quality: 2
14. Abbrev: Personal knowledge
    Title: Personal knowledge of the author, RAS, [address for private use].
    Repository:
    Name: RAS (personal knowledge)
    
    Page: attended funeral
    Quality: 3
15. Abbrev: County Clerk's Office, Tarrant County, Texas- Public Access
    Title: County Clerk's Office, Tarrant County, Texas- Public Access:,, https://ccrecordse.tarrantcountytx.gov/Marriage/SearchEntry.aspx?e=newSession
    Note:
    
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (scan/digital photo of original image)
    
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
    
    Page: cert. no. M167080798
16. Abbrev: Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002
    Title: For , , Texas Department of State Health Services; Ancestry.com, www.ancestry.com.
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
    
    Page: divorce index; Samuel L Clark/Sandra J Clark; 21 September 1970
    Text: Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002
    Name: Samuel L Clark
    Estimated Birth Year: abt 1947
    Age: 23
    Spouse's Name: Sandra J [Clark]
    Spouse's Estimated Birth Year: abt 1949
    Spouse's Age: 21
    Divorce Date: 21 Sep 1970
    Marriage Date: 30 Dec 1967
    Number of Children: 1
    County: Freestone
17. Abbrev: Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002
    Title: For , , Texas Department of State Health Services; Ancestry.com, www.ancestry.com.
    Repository:
    Name: RAS Private Collection (from compiled online database)
    
    Page: online database; Samuel L Clark/Susan E Clark; 15 April 1976
    Text: Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002about Samuel L Clark
    Name: Samuel L Clark
    Estimated Birth Year: abt 1949
    Age: 27
    Spouse's Name: Susan E [Clark]
    Spouse's Estimated Birth Year: abt 1954
    Spouse's Age: 22
    Divorce Date: 15 Apr 1976
    Marriage Date: 7 Oct 1972
    Number of Children: 1
    County: Tarrant