In 1897 Colonel Charles Clifton left Ball, Lewis and Yates Coal Mining Company to become secretary and treasurer for the George N. Pierce Company. He remained the treasurer after a 1909 reorganization which saw the formation of the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company. In 1916, Colonel Clifton became president of Pierce-Arrow, and in 1919 he was named chairman of its board of directors. Apart from his duties with Pierce-Arrow, Colonel Clifton served as president of National Automobile Chamber of Commerce from its birth in 1913 until March 2, 1927, when he resigned his active post to serve in an honorary capacity.