Charles F. Mayer

Charles Frederick Mayer (October 15, 1795 - January 3, 1864) was an American lawyer, Maryland state senator, and railroad director.

Early life Mayer was born in Baltimore on October 15, 1795, to Christian Mayer, who emigrated from Germany to Baltimore in 1784. Charles' younger brother, Brantz Mayer (1809-1879), would become a diplomat like their father; in 1844, he founded the Maryland Historical Society. Another brother, Lewis Mayer, was a pioneer in anthracite mining and the father of Charles F. Mayer (ca. 1834–1904), the 10th president of the B&O.

Charles attended Dickinson College and later became a trustee. In America, he increased his fortune as an East Indies ship owner and merchant, and also served his home country for five decades as Consul General of Württemberg.

Returning to his home city, he became a leading light in its intellectual life: "His house was a center for all that was intellectual and cultured in the Baltimore of those days". In 1833, as the chairman of a joint committee of the legislative house, he helped produce the "Report relative to the plans of operation of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company." His efforts helped settle a dispute between the C&O and B&O and thereby helped ensure Baltimore's access to western markets.

Mayer died on January 3, 1864, at his Franklin street home in Baltimore. He was buried in Baltimore's Green Mount Cemetery.

Interests and clubs He was a member of the Maryland Club and helped found the "Baltimore House of Refuge."