He emigrated to the Thirteen Colonies from Ireland, in 1768, with his father, brother, Thomas, mother, sister, Ann, and several other family members, landing in Baltimore, Maryland, and staying there for some time.
In early 1778, Edward Worthington left his wife at Harrod's Town and joined the Kentucky Militia as a captain under Colonel George Rogers Clark.
With Clark and his Illinois Regiment, Virginia State Forces, Captain Worthington went down the Ohio River accompanied by thirteen pioneer families and arrived at Corn Island, now Louisville, Kentucky.
At Corn Island, Colonel George Rogers Clark set up his military camp, where he recruited and trained his troops for the secret campaign to capture the Illinois Country from the British.
[9] In 1781, Captain Worthington was ordered by General Clark to withdraw his company of soldiers and abandon Fort Jefferson, which was remote and indefensible from continuous Chickasaw attacks.