William Skinner (1728-1798) was a politician and solider from Perquimans County. He represented Perquimans in the North Carolina Provincial Congress from 1775-1776 and then served in the Senate in 1777. He was the treasurer for the Northern District from 1777-1779 and also served as a Brigadier General over the Edenton District Brigade of the North Carolina Militia during the same period. After the discovery of the Gourd Patch Affair, Skinner was ordered to keep a guard over the jail and powder magazine at Edenton in order to prevent further unrest.