John Palsgrave Wyllys (1754-1790) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

officer from Connecticut. Wyllys was the son of George Wyllys and Mary Woodbridge, and the youngest brother of Samuel Wyllys. He graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

with Nathan Hale. Wyllys began his

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

service during the Siege of Boston. Wyllys was captured by the British during the retreat from New York. He was released the following year, and promoted to Captain in the

9th Connecticut Regiment The 9th Connecticut Regiment was a regiment of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. It was first called Webb's Additional Continental Regiment (after its colonel, Samuel Blachley Webb) before being added to the Connecticu ...

. He also participated in the Saratoga campaign of 1777. He was promoted to Major in 1780, while serving in

Webb's Additional Continental Regiment The 9th Connecticut Regiment was a regiment of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. It was first called Webb's Additional Continental Regiment (after its colonel, Samuel Blachley Webb) before being added to the Connecti ...

. During the

Yorktown campaign The Yorktown campaign, also known as the Virginia campaign, was a series of military maneuvers and battles during the American Revolutionary War that culminated in the siege of Yorktown in October 1781. The result of the campaign was the surren ...

, he commanded the 3rd Connecticut Regiment under General Lafayette. Wyllys married Jerusha Talcott. They had one child, who died an infant in 1783. Jerusha died a week later. Wyllys joined the

First American Regiment The First American Regiment (also known as Harmar's Regiment, The United States Regiment, The Regiment of Infantry, 1st Sub-legion, 1st Regiment of Infantry and 1st Infantry Regiment) was the first peacetime regular army infantry unit authorize ...

in 1785. He took part in the Harmar campaign of 1790, and was in command of the combined U.S. regular and militia force in the climactic Battle of Kekionga on 22 October 1790. His plan to take the Native American town was foiled when Native American decoys drew away his militia support. After Wyllys and his 60 regulars crossed the St. Joseph River, they were ambushed in an open field. Wyllys died in battle. A non-commissioned officer of the regiment reported seeing a Native American flaunting Wyllys' large hat. A street in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

is named for him.

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* * American people of the Northwest Indian War Continental Army officers from Connecticut Yale College alumni American military personnel killed in the Northwest Indian War 1754 births 1790 deaths {{US-Army-bio-stub