Elijah Clarke was born in North Carolina in about 1742. He moved to Wilkes County, Georgia by 1773 and at the outbreak of the American Revolution he became a captain in the Wilkes County Regiment of the Georgia Militia. He was promoted to colonel in 1779 after the Battle of Kettle Creek. Following the war Clarke became a general in the militia and represented Wilkes in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1781 to 1790. He also led armed expeditions against the Cherokee and Creek nations. He died in Wilkes County on January 15, 1799.