William Caswell (1754-1785) was a captain in the 5th North Carolina Regiment in the Continental Army and was Governor Richard Caswell's son. In the summer of 1777, Caswell's regiment was based on Pennsylvania, where he would eventually fight in the Battle of Brandywine in September of that year, where he was wounded. Captain Caswell returned home to Dobbs County in 1778, where he served in the North Carolina General Assembly and later served as a general for the New Bern District of the North Carolina Militia.