Mr. Darling was a native of Michigan, having been born at Lake Ridge, a small settlement in Lenawee county, on April 15, 1847. His early education was at the district school, called the Darling School House, after which he attended high school for a term at Tecumseh, Michigan, eight miles from his farm home. In 1873 he graduated as civil engineer at the University of Michigan. The same year he entered the employ of the government and for nine years was engaged as assistant engineer on the U.S. Lake Survey chiefly in the measurement of angles on the primary systems of triangulation.