Cyrus Mark

Last updated March 22, 2019

Cyrus Mark (June 3, 1900 – February 8, 1983) was a prominent early advocate of nature conservancy in the state of Illinois. [1] Mark served as the first Executive Director of the Illinois chapter of The Nature Conservancy. He was instrumental in the first Nature Conservancy acquisition in the Chicago area; Volo Bog. In 1958, Mark, along with George Fell, the first president of the Nature Conservancy, negotiated the purchase of Volo Bog by The Nature Conservancy. [1]

Illinois is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It has the 5th largest Gross Domestic Product by state, is the 6th-most populous U.S. state and 25th-largest state in terms of land area. Illinois is often noted as a microcosm of the entire United States. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in northern and central Illinois, and natural resources such as coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a diverse economic base, and is a major transportation hub. Chicagoland, Chicago's metropolitan area, contains over 65% of the state's population. The Port of Chicago connects the state to other global ports around the world from the Great Lakes, via the Saint Lawrence Seaway, to the Atlantic Ocean; as well as the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River, via the Illinois Waterway on the Illinois River. The Mississippi River, the Ohio River, and the Wabash River form parts of the boundaries of Illinois. For decades, Chicago's O'Hare International Airport has been ranked as one of the world's busiest airports. Illinois has long had a reputation as a bellwether both in social and cultural terms and, through the 1980s, in politics.

The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a charitable environmental organization, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, United States.

Volo Bog State Natural Area is a nature reserve in Illinois, United States, preserving Volo Bog. The bog was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1973 as the only remaining open-water quaking bog in Illinois. The site also contains woodlands, savanna, marshes, prairie restoration areas, shrubland and old fields. Maintained by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the site is located about a mile west of U.S. Route 12 between the towns of Volo and Fox Lake, Illinois.

Mark, botanist Dr. Margery Carlson, the secretary of the Illinois chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and many others raised almost 1300 contributions from organizations and individuals (including teachers and students) to cover the cost of the acquisition. This was the first time in the chapter's history that there was an appeal to the public for help in raising funds. Mark employed many strategies in his fund-raising efforts from emphasizing the scientific and educational values of the land, to pointing out that contributions were tax-deductible. After its purchase by the Nature Conservancy, Volo Bog was conveyed to the University of Illinois and then to the State of Illinois for protection. [1]

Tax deduction is a reduction of income that is able to be taxed and is commonly a result of expenses, particularly those incurred to produce additional income. Tax deductions are a form of tax incentives, along with exemptions and credits. The difference between deductions, exemptions and credits is that deductions and exemptions both reduce taxable income, while credits reduce tax.

Biography

Mark was the son of Clayton Mark, one of the pioneer makers of steel pipe in the United States and the founder of Marktown, a planned worker community listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [2] Cyrus Mark was educated at Yale University and the University of Iowa. In 1923 he began work at Clayton Mark & Co. as an assistant treasurer. [3] He held various positions including plant manager, vice president, and became president, general manager and director in 1943. Cyrus retired as president in 1963. Cyrus always had an interest in birds and conservation. He was also the chairman of the Illinois Nature Conservancy and a director of the national Nature Conservancy. [4]

Clayton Mark, one of the pioneer makers of steel pipe in the United States, was an industrialist in the Chicago area who founded the Mark Manufacturing Company in 1888, a firm for the fabrication and sale of water-well supplies and Clayton Mark and Company in 1900. In addition, Mark founded Marktown, a planned worker community in Northwest Indiana on the National Register of Historic Places. He was known for his philanthropy and civic contributions.

Marktown is an urban planned worker community in East Chicago, Indiana, United States, built during the Progressive Era in 1917 from marshland to provide a complete community for workers at The Mark Manufacturing Company.

Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded in 1701, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine Colonial Colleges chartered before the American Revolution.

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References

1 2 3 Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2009). The South Shore Journal, 3.
↑ Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2011). Marktown: Clayton Mark's Planned Worker Community in Northwest Indiana. South Shore Journal, 4. https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ssj/article/view/13413
↑ World Who's Who in Commerce and Industry (1938). Marquis Who's Who, Chicago, IL.
↑ Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2009). https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ssj/article/view/13403/0/

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[smith1-1] 1 2 3 Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2009). The South Shore Journal, 3.

[2] Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2011). Marktown: Clayton Mark's Planned Worker Community in Northwest Indiana. South Shore Journal, 4. https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ssj/article/view/13413

[3] World Who's Who in Commerce and Industry (1938). Marquis Who's Who, Chicago, IL.

[4] Smith, S. & Mark, S. (2009). https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ssj/article/view/13403/0/