The site that would become Clarksville was first used as a base of operations by George Rogers Clark during the American Revolution. In 1778 he established a post on an island at the head of the Falls of the Ohio, from which he trained his 175-man regiment for the defense to the west. After the war, Clark was granted a tract of for his services in the war. In 1783, were set aside for the development of a town, Clarksville. The same year a stockade was built and settlement began.