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Randolph & Darke County Histories
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Darke County Ohio History
On January 3, 1809, the Ohio government authorized the creation of Darke County. Residents named the county in honor of General William Darke, a hero of the American Revolution.
In 1795, General Anthony Wayne and the chiefs of thirteen Indian tribes signed the Treaty of Green Ville, forcing the natives to move to the northwestern corner of what would become Ohio. The sides signed the treaty at Fort Greene Ville, located in modern-day Darke County.
The Treaty of GreeneVille 1795
The continued movement of whites into Native American hunting grounds and village territory set the scene for the Indian Wars in the country Northwest of the Ohio river.
Chief Little Turtle became the leader whose directives were to result in the destruction of two American armies. He also was the catalyst that led to the establishment of a lasting settlement.
In 1790, General Josiah Harmer, with a poorly trained and ill equipped army and volunteer militia, was sent to attack the Indian villages on the upper Maumee River. Harmer was soundly defeated. President Washington reinforced the army and assigned General Arthur St. Clair to command. St. Clair went north from Ft. Washington (Cincinnati) and built Ft. Hamilton and Ft. Jefferson. On October 1791, St. Clair left Ft. Jefferson and camped at a spot later called Ft. Recovery on November 3, 1791.
On November 4, the army of 1400 were surprised at sunrise by a host of Indians. Within a few hours, St. Clair was forced to retreat under cover provided by Col. William Darke. Nine hundred men, women and children were killed.
President Washington sent more soldiers and provisions. Now the army totaled 5,000 men. General Anthony was placed in command. Wayne followed the trail opened by St. Clair, but did not stop at Ft. Jefferson. Instead, he moved 6 miles north to strategic site where he built a stronghold of logs that covered 55 acres. He called the place Fort Greene Ville in honor of his Revolutionary comrade, Nathanael Greene.
Once again the solders and Indians clashed at Ft. Recovery and then at Maumee at Fallen Timbers. This time the British allies betrayed the Indians and Wayne decisively defeated the confederated tribes. The Indians decided to pursue an honorable peace with the Americans. So it was that Anthony Wayne began the preparations for a great assembly of the confederated tribes at Ft. Greene Ville.
Greene Ville was the headquarters of the Legion of the United States from 1793 to 1796. It may be that it was at Ft. Greene Ville that the first fifteen star American flag was flown.
Randolph County Indiana History
Randolph County was formed in 1818. There is a dispute as to the origin of the name. Some say that the County was named for Randolph County, North Carolina. That County was named for Peyton Randolph, the first President of the Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation.
Another version is that the County was named for President Thomas Jefferson's first cousin, Thomas Randolph, who was Attorney General for the Indiana Territory, and who was killed in the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. One problem with this story is whether Thomas Randolph was killed at Tippecanoe. There was a Thomas Randolph listed in Capt. Benjamin Parke's Troop of Light Dragoons, but this Randolph is not shown as killed.
The obvious namesake would be Gov. Edmund Randolph of Virginia, who signed the law transferring the Northwest Territory from Virginia to the United States, allowing for the formation of the Indiana Territory. Edmund was the nephew of Peyton Randolph, and the executor of his estate. Historians have, however, studied this and rejected the obvious conclusion.
All of the above Randolphs were related, so that one can safely conclude that the County was named for this important, early colonial family.