George Rogers Clark
1752–1818
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In 1775, while the American Revolution was being waged along the east coast, those in Kentucky were having their own difficulties: a land speculator from North Carolina had illegally purchased Kentucky property and wished to create a new colony. Disagreement arose, and Clark, along with John Gabriel Jones, was chosen to deliver a petition to the Virginia General Assembly asking that Kentucky lands might be incorporated into Virginia. The petition passed, and Clark was appointed a major in the Kentucky County militia. By the time of his return, the Revolutionary War had intensified in the west, and British governors led squadrons of Native Americans in raids on the settlers. With the Continental Army still preoccupied in the east, Clark relied on local men to defend the colony. He determined that their best hope of success lay in seizing British outposts, and he did so in 1778 and ‘79, taking the first of two important villages on the two-year anniversary of the signing of the Declaration if Independence. Several other victories quickly followed, as the Indian soldiers were unwilling to defend their European leaders. His ultimate goal lay in taking Detroit from British hands, but while he attempted the journey on several occasions, he never succeeded. He was, however, instrumental in nearly doubling the size of colonial land, and after the war he was hailed as the “Conqueror of the old Northwest.”
Clark was only thirty at the end of the Revolutionary War, but his greatest achievements were already behind him. Settlers poured into Kentucky, and despite several treaties drawn up by Clark and others, violence between colonists and Indians continued. Clark later led a campaign against several Native American towns, but he met with little success, and after rumors began circling about his drinking while on duty, his reputation was greatly tarnished and he left Kentucky for Indiana. While he had earned money for his military career, he was only able to claim a portion of it, and he lived the rest of his life with financial difficulties. With his career seemingly over and desperate for money, Clark offered his services to the French ambassador Edmond-Charles Genêt. Clark used $4,700 of his own money to fund an expedition to the Mississippi River, where he planned to drive out the Spanish and take the river for America. Before he could achieve this, however, he was recalled by an order from President Washington, who would not have him threaten U.S. neutrality. Genêt returned to France, and Clark was never reimbursed. Soon debtors seized Clark’s lands, and, nearly penniless, he returned to Kentucky.
In 1809, Clark suffered a severe stroke, falling into a fireplace and burning his leg so badly that it later had to be amputated. Unable to work, Clark moved in with his brother-in-law. Luckily, he was finally as this time recognized for his work in the Revolutionary War effort, and he was granted a pension of $400 per year. After a second stroke, Clark died in February 1818.
Key events during the life of George Rogers Clark:
| Travelled into western Virginia as a surveyor. | |
| Served as captain during Lord Dunmore’s War. | |
| Brought a petition to Virginia asking the colony to extend its boundaries to include Kentucky. | |
| Was appointed a major in the Kentucky County militia. | |
| Captured Kaskaskia in Illinois. | |
| Captured Vincennes, Indiana. | |
| Served as superintendent-surveyor for Virginia’s war veterans. | |
| Led an expedition against Indian towns on the Wabash River. | |
| Moved to Indiana. | |
| Put together a campaign to wrest the Mississippi from Spanish control. | |
| Suffered a stroke and fell into a fireplace, severely burning one leg. | |
| Moved in with his brother-in-law in Locust Grove, Kentucky. | |
| Died. |
Other Resources
| Clark and His Men in | Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans by Edward Eggleston |
| How Clark won the Northwest in | Historical Tales: American II by Charles Morris |
Image Links | ||
|---|---|---|
 Again in Kentucky, having walked there alone in Conquest of the Old Northwest |
 You may go on with your fun,' said Clark in Conquest of the Old Northwest |
 We trust that you will not separate parents from their children.' in Conquest of the Old Northwest |
George Rogers Clarke in Indian History for Young Folks |
 George Rogers Clark in Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans |
 Wade in', cried Clark, 'and follow me!' in America First—100 Stories from Our History |
 Captains Lewis and Clark were much puzzled at this point in Trails of the Pathfinders |
 Clark's March in Story of the Thirteen Colonies |
 George Rogers Clark in Four American Indians |
| Led an expedition up the Missouri River, map-making, gathering information, and looking for a passage to the Pacific Ocean. | |
| Francis Marion | Revolutionary War leader whose used guerilla tactics against the Tories in the Southeast marshes. |
| 'Hero of Bennington' during the American Revolution. Fought with Rogers' Rangers during French Indian War. | |
| Simon Kenton | Leading settler of the Ohio and Kentucky valleys. Fought on various Indian wars and the Revolutionary war. |