Clark, George Rogers

George Rogers (1752-1818), an American soldier and pioneer. He was a native of Virginia. In 1775 he settled in Kentucky. At the outbreak of the Revolution he was a leader in the midst of the Indian warfare waged in the Ohio Valley. He defended Harrodsburg against the combined attack of British and Indians. In 1778-9 he led a force of Kentucky riflemen across the Ohio to the capture of Kaskaskia on the Mississippi. From this post he marched eastward to surprise the British at Fort Vincennes on the Wabash. This cross country march of a small force, floundering through deep snow or wading waist deep in icy water to attack a superior foe intrenched in comfort, is one of the most notable, as well as successful, expeditions on record. At the conclusion of peace it gave the United States a title to the Mississippi Valley by virtue of conquest and occupancy. In his latter days, as is too often the case, Clark's services were forgotten. He became a drunkard, fell into want, and died near Louisville in utter neglect. Good portraits are given in Churchill's The Crossing, Thompson's Alice of Old Vincennes, and Roosevelt's Winning of the West.