Edwin Warfield

Edwin Warfield

Edwin Warfield (born May 7, 1848 in Howard County , Maryland , †  March 31, 1920 in Baltimore , Maryland) was an American politician and governor of the state of Maryland from 1904 to 1908 .

Early years

Edwin Warfield attended local schools in his home country. In his youth he often had to help his parents on their plantation called "Oakland". At the same time he worked as a teacher in order to finance a law degree. After passing his exams and admission to the bar, he began working in his new profession in Ellicott City .

Political rise

Warfield was a member of the Democratic Party . Between 1874 and 1881 he was employed in the administration of Howard County at the notary's office with the jurisdiction for wills ( Register of Wills ). From 1882 to 1886 he was a member of the Maryland Senate . In this body he succeeded Arthur Pue Gorman , who became a US Senator and was to become a domestic political opponent of Warfield. In 1886, Warfield was even President of the Senate in Maryland. He supported Grover Cleveland during the presidential campaign in 1884 . This appointed him after his election victory as head of the port authority of Baltimore. He held this office between April 5, 1885 and May 1, 1890.

After the change of government in Washington in 1889, he was replaced from this post. After that he retired from politics for some time. He founded the Fidelity and Deposit Company in Baltimore, of which he was to remain president until his death. In 1896 he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention . In 1899, he unsuccessfully applied for the Democratic nomination for the upcoming gubernatorial election. The reason for the negative attitude was the resistance of the party leaders including Arthur Gorman. Despite this opposition, Warfield made another attempt for the office of governor in 1903. This time not only was he nominated, but he also won the subsequent election against Stevenson A. Williams.

Governor of maryland

Edwin Warfield took up his new office on January 13, 1904. The most important event of his four-year term in office was to be a proposal to amend the state constitution brought by his old opponent Gorman, which would have dramatically restricted the right to vote for the black population. The proposal was quickly adopted by the Legislature, but Governor Warfield refused to sign the document. Thereupon the people had to vote in a vote on the planned constitutional amendment. This was rejected with a majority of 30,000 votes. The whole process seriously damaged the governor within his party. She did not want to forgive him for his attitude on this matter. At the end of his tenure, relations between Warfield and his party were very tense.

In addition to this question, Warfield campaigned for the direct election of US Senators. A few years later, this proposal was implemented with the 17th Amendment to the Constitution . This was also when the official state flag of Maryland was introduced. The Maryland Senate offices have been restored to their historic style to look like they had in the time of George Washington .

Another résumé

Warfield's tenure ended on January 8, 1908. In the following years he devoted himself to his private and business affairs as well as the Maryland Historical Society , of which he became president. At the end of 1919 his health deteriorated, so that he could hardly leave his home in Baltimore. He died there in March 1920. He had four children with his wife, Emma Nicodemus.

literature

• Robert Sobel and John Raimo (Eds.): Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978. Volume 2, Meckler Books, Westport, 1978. 4 volumes.

Web links

• Edwin Warfield in the National Governors Association (English)
• Edwin Warfield in the database of Find a Grave (English)