William Darke

William Darke (1736 – November 20, 1801) was a soldier from Virginia.

Born in Pennsylvania, Darke moved to Shepherdstown, Virginia at age five. He served briefly in the Rutherford Rangers during the French and Indian War. The "Dictionary of American Biography" notes that there is no proof that Darke served with General Edward Braddock's army in 1755, as was often claimed.

In the American Revolutionary War, Darke was a Continental Army captain in the 8th Virginia Regiment when he was wounded and taken prisoner at the Battle of Germantown in 1777. He was held in a British prison ship in New York Harbor until his exchange in 1780. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel and was probably present at the siege of Yorktown in 1781.

After the war he served in the Virginia Convention in 1788 and subsequently served in the Virginia legislature. As a lieutenant colonel in the Kentucky militia, Darke commanded the left wing at the disastrous Battle of the Wabash in 1791 during the Northwest Indian War. His son Captain Joseph Darke was killed in the battle.

Darke was subsequently a militia general. Darke County, Ohio is named for him.

References

*"Dictionary of American Biography"
*Purcell, L. Edward. "Who Was Who in the American Revolution". New York: Facts on File, 1993. ISBN 0-8160-2107-4.