George Rogers Clark Essay, Research Paper

George Rogers ClarkGeorge Rogers Clark was a famous war hero who commanded important victories over the British troops in the Northwest territories during the American Revolution. In the year of 1752, a boy named George Rogers Clark was born in Charlottesville, Virginia. No one would have guessed that he would someday be a hero like his brother William Clark. William Clark received most of the attention from the “Lewis and Clark expedition.” At an early age George Rogers had a dream of becoming a surveyor. He was living in Kentucky, then part of the Virginia colony, when the American Revolution begun.At age 26 George Rogers Clark was an imposing figure, six-feet tall with dark red hair. He was a knowledgeable frontiersman that had a vision that he could nearly double the size of this country. In 1777, he was made a lieutenant colonel in the Virginia militia. In 1778, George Rogers Clark traveled down the Ohio River to the Falls of Ohio where he would set up his camp. For his camp, Clark chose an island at the Falls of the Ohio River. He then named the island Corn Island, later to be renamed as Louisville. Here Clark trained his troops for battle. It was then when he led an expedition of 175 men against the Red Coats in the Illinois country. Here he captured the British forts Kaskaskia and Cahokia on the Mississippi River and Vincennes on the Wabash River.In the summer of 1778 British lieutenant Governor Hamilton marched his troops from Detroit to recapture Vincennes from George Rogers Clark and the Americans. Hamilton also planed to recapture the forts of Kaskaskia and Cahokia, but Clark denied the opportunity.

In a daring attempt, also considered one of the greatest moments of the American Revolution, Clark led fewer than 200 men on foot a 175 mile journey during a brutal winter to attempt to recapture the British fort of Vincennes. This dangerous mission took Clark and his troops close to three weeks. Clark ordered his troops to spread out through the woods, trying to trick the British troops into thinking there were more American troops than there actually were. When Clark ordered his men to begin firing on the British fort, the British were unsure of how many American troops there were. Clark s troops were deadly shots which convinced the British that they were easily outnumbered. Hamilton surrendered and ensured Clark and America control of the Northwest Territory, which included the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan.Later on August 8, 1780 George Rogers Clark led Daniel Boone and a group of Kentuckians to Chillicothe, Ohio. Here he defeated the Shawnee Indians in the Battle of Piqua. By winning this battle Clark and his frontiersman prevented the British from re-establishing control in the Northwest Territory.Today in Vincennes, Indiana stands a park in memory of George Rogers Clark. This memorial stands on the site of Fort Sackville in memory of the capturing from the British. This is known as one of the greatest moments in the American Revolution. The park was opened on July 23, 1966. All throughout the park people can see programs and displays. The park was made so that no one will forget the memory of a war hero named George Rogers Clark.