Edwin Warfield

Edwin Warfield (May 7, 1848 – March 31, 1920) was an American politician and a member of the United States Democratic Party, and the 45th governor of Maryland from 1904 to 1908. From 1902 to 1903, he served as president general of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.

Early life Edwin Warfield was born to Albert G. Warfield and Margaret Gassaway Warfield at the "Oakdale" plantation in Howard County, Maryland. He received early education at the public schools of Howard County and at St. Timothy's Hall (formerly an Episcopal Church institution, now known as St. Timothy's School) in Catonsville, Maryland, southwest of Baltimore. In 1877, he became a professor at Maryland's Agricultural College.

Although Maryland was a Union State, many families were southern sympathizers, and two of Warfield's brothers served in the Confederate States Army. Gassaway Watkins Warfield died at Camp Chase, while Albert G Warfield Jr. survived the conflict. The emancipation of enslaved workers left his family with little property besides their land, and so Warfield interrupted his education to work on the family farm. Warfield's lineage also allowed him membership into the Sons of the American Revolution, where he served as President General from 1902 until 1903.

Political career In 1874, Warfield was appointed to fill a vacancy in the office of Register of Wills for Howard County. He was elected to a full six-year term the following year, and served until 1881. While in the Senate, Warfield began his own law practice in Ellicott City, Maryland, and purchased the Ellicott City Times, where he served as editor from 1882 to 1886.

Governor of Maryland Gov. Warfield leading the 3rd Brigade of the Maryland National Guard in the inaugural parade of 26th President Theodore Roosevelt on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., photographed by William H. Rau on March 4, 1905 Warfield chose to run for Governor of Maryland in 1899, but lost the Democratic nomination after he was opposed by influential Maryland politicians, including Arthur Pue Gorman, a powerful U.S. Senator who was allied to the interests of "old pols" in Baltimore City. Though it was apparent that the party bosses did not hold him in favor, he again sought the nomination in 1903, openly discouraging African Americans' ability to vote. He was successfully nominated by the party, and defeated his Republican opponent, Stevenson A. Williams, by over 12,600 votes. He was inaugurated as the 45th Governor of Maryland on January 13, 1904.

The most significant event of his tenure as Governor came when Arthur Pue Gorman, who had opposed Warfield's election, proposed the "Poe Amendment" to the Maryland State Constitution of 1867, which would have disenfranchised most black voters in the state. The bill easily passed the Democrat-controlled General Assembly, but Warfield refused to support the proposed amendment and delayed placing it before the voters. While Warfield was in favor of some of the amendment's provisions (such as denying the vote to the less-educated black voters of the state) he feared it would eventually lead to greater levels of disenfranchisement which could threaten all voters in the state. He served on the board of the Montgomery Mutual Insurance Company until his death. In addition to retaining his presidency at the Fidelity and Deposit Company, he was a prominent member of the Maryland Club and served as president of the Maryland Historical Society (1913–1920).

Warfield's health began to deteriorate in late 1919, and he was confined to his home in Baltimore during the last few months of his life. He died there, and was interred in his family burial ground at "Cherry Grove" in Howard County. In 1914, a dredge named the Gov. Warfield helped to dig the Cape Cod Canal in Massachusetts.