{{Short description|American politician}} {{more footnotes needed|date=March 2013}} <!-- This article was automatically created by User:polbot from http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=C000519. The prose may be stilted, and there may be grammatical and Wikification errors. Please improve in any way you see fit. -->{{Infobox officeholder | name = Joseph Clift | image = Hon. Joseph W. Clift, Ga. Surgeon, U.S.A - NARA - 527370.jpg | state = Georgia | district = 1st | term_start = {{start date|1868|7|25}} | term_end = {{end date|1869|3|3}} | preceded = Peter Early Love | succeeded = William W. Paine | birth_date = {{birth date|1837|9|30}} | death_date = {{death date and age|1908|5|2|1837|9|30}} | birth_place = North Marshfield, Massachusetts, US | death_place = Rock City Falls, New York, US | spouse = | profession = Surgeon, Politician | party = Republican | alma_mater = | nickname = | allegiance = United States | branch = United States Army (Union Army) | service_years = | rank = | unit = Army of the Potomac | commands = | battles = American Civil War | awards = }}
'''Joseph Wales Clift''' (September 30, 1837 – May 2, 1908) was a U.S. Representative from Georgia representing Georgia's 1st congressional district from 1868 to 1869 upon Georgia's re-admittance to the United States after the American Civil War.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Bioguide Search |url=https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/C000519 |access-date=2023-10-10 |website=bioguide.congress.gov}}</ref>
== Early life and education == Born in North Marshfield, Massachusetts, Clift attended the common schools and Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts.He graduated from the medical school of Harvard University in 1862.
== Career ==
=== Military career === Clift entered the Union Army and was acting surgeon from July 13, 1862, to August 7, 1865. He served until November 18, 1866.<ref name=":0" />
=== Registrar of Savannah === After the war, Clift practiced medicine in Savannah, Georgia and was soon appointed registrar of the city of Savannah by Major General Pope under the reconstruction acts.<ref name=":0" />
=== U.S. House of Representatives === Upon the readmission of Georgia to the United States, Clift was elected as a Republican to the 40th United States Congress and served from July 25, 1868, to March 3, 1869. Clift presented credentials as a Member-elect to the 41st United States Congress, but was not permitted to qualify.<ref name=":0" />
== Later life and death == After being declined his seat after re-election, Clift moved back to Massachusetts and continued to practice medicine. Clift died in Rock City Falls, New York, May 2, 1908.
==References== {{Commons category|Joseph W. Clift}} <references />{{S-start}} {{s-par|us-hs}} {{US House succession box|state=Georgia|district=1|before=''Vacant''|after=''Vacant''|years=July 25, 1868 – March 3, 1869}} {{S-end}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clift, Joseph W.}} Category:1837 births Category:1908 deaths Category:Harvard Medical School alumni Category:Phillips Academy alumni Category:Republican Party United States representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Politicians from Savannah, Georgia Category:Union army surgeons Category:19th-century United States representatives