how do get a clone of a commit from history github

Run in the your working copy directory: git checkout <COMMIT_HASH>

you just use the archive after you clone:

git archive <sha1 you want> | tar -x -C /some/path/to/save/to

if you want to actually work on the repository, checkout the commit:

git checkout <sha1 you want>

Just be careful as now you are not on any branch. You need a branch to push and pull and track your commits. So make a branch first and then check it out:

git branch mywork <the sha1 you want>
git checkout mywork

or in one line:

git checkout -b mybranch <sha1 you want>