Clapp was born in
Chelsea, west London, on 3 May 1867, and was educated at Long Ashton School, Bristol. At age eighteen, he made his
county cricket debut for
Somerset as a
professional. His first match was Somerset's 1885 season opener, against
Hampshire, and batting as part of the
middle order, Clapp scored three runs in the first
innings, but was out without scoring in the second. He made two further appearances for Somerset that year: in his second, he achieved his highest score of the season, 23
not out, against
Gloucestershire, while in the third he twisted his knee, and was unable to bat in either innings. At the end of the 1885 season, Somerset were stripped of their first-class status due to their poor performances, and inability to field a full side in all their fixtures. During Somerset's years as a "second-class" county, Clapp continued with the team, batting throughout the order as required, and occasionally bowling his
medium-pace deliveries. He achieved two half-centuries for the county during this time, against
Warwickshire in 1887, and
Staffordshire in 1889. His score of 85 not out in the first of those matches was the highest score he made for Somerset, while a return of two wickets for 17 runs against the same team in 1886 was his best bowling analysis for the county. In 1890, Clapp played in eleven of Somerset's scheduled thirteen fixtures, of which the club won all but won, which was a tie against
Middlesex. As a result of this successful season, Somerset were readmitted to first-class cricket for the subsequent 1891 season. For his work in 1890, Clapp was allocated part of the £132 that Somerset allocated between their three professional players that summer. For the following two seasons, Clapp did not play for Somerset, but made his county appearances solely for Shropshire. During this time, he achieved a batting average of 35.66 for Shropshire, and scored six half-centuries and one century, the latter score coming in the second innings of a match against
Oxfordshire. He also bowled regularly with some success, taking 74 wickets at 16.66. Clapp made five further first-class appearances for Somerset in 1894 and 1895, though in ten innings he only reached double figures batting twice. On the first of those occasions, he made his highest total in first-class cricket, scoring an unbeaten 60 against Hampshire. He made his final first-class appearance in June 1895, facing Middlesex at
Lord's. In his history of Somerset cricket, David Foot describes Clapp as an "amiable but undistinguished pro". Clapp died in Bristol on 3 June 1936, aged 69. ==Notes==