Marker will honor Revoluntionary War leader

From Newark Post: Marker will honor Revoluntionary War leader

New Castle County Executive Paul Clark and representatives from the Delaware Historical Society, Delaware Public Archives, Hale-Byrnes House, and Delaware Society Sons of the American Revolution will gather at noon Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Kirkwood Highway Library to dedicate a historical marker in honor of Capt. Robert Kirkwood Jr., the Revolutionary War officer from Delaware for whom the Kirkwood Highway is named.


The marker replaces the original Kirkwood marker that stood on the north side of the highway at Polly Drummond Hill Road near White Clay Creek Presbyterian Church, Newark. That marker has been missing since at least 1985, according to the state archives.

Born in 1756, Robert Kirkwood Jr. spent his youth on the family farm on Polly Drummond Hill. He eventually enrolled at the Newark Academy, later to become the University of Delaware. When the American Revolution began, Kirkwood was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Delaware Regiment under the command of Colonel John Haslet. He was promoted to captain in December 1776.
In the early years of the war Kirkwood distinguished himself at such battles as Long Island, Brandywine, and Germantown. During the latter part of the war the Delaware Regiment was sent to participate in the southern campaign. Under Kirkwood’s leadership, the Delaware troops earned a reputation for discipline and hard fighting through their key roles at the battles of Cowpens (South Carolina) and Guilford Courthouse (North Carolina).

In 1782 Kirkwood returned to Delaware and married Sarah England. Following his wife’s death in 1787 he was granted land in the Northwest Territory and moved to southeastern Ohio. Land disputes in the area led to armed conflict between the new settlers and Native Americans. Kirkwood re-entered the army and was killed in action at St. Clair’s Defeat near the Ohio-Indiana border on Nov. 4, 1791.

The marker dedication will be held rain or shine. In conjunction with the dedication, the Hale-Byrnes House and the Delaware Historical Society will open the “Delaware and the Revolutionary War” exhibit in the lobby of the Kirkwood Library, 6000 Kirkwood Highway. The exhibit will be displayed through September.