[1] Following her mother's death when Ruth was 11, she and her sister were placed in St. Mary's Seminary in Narragansett, Rhode Island.

[citation needed] She was a favorite of director John Ford (they played bridge together), who used her in eight films, but rarely in substantial roles.

[3][4] Clifford's obituary in the Los Angeles Times noted that she "became a prime source for historians of the silent screen era".

[5] In the 1940s, Clifford toured the United States as a member of the Abbey Theatre Company and had lead roles in "classic Irish plays".

[1] Clifford married Beverly Hills, California real-estate developer James Cornelius[6] on December 5, 1924.