American merchant and politician
Benjamin Edwards (August 12, 1753 – November 13, 1829) was an American merchant and political leader from Montgomery County, Maryland. He represented the third district of Maryland for a very short time in the United States House of Representatives in 1795 after Uriah Forrest resigned.
Early life.
Edwards was born on August 12, 1753, in Stafford County, Virginia; the son of Haden Edwards and Penelope (née Sanford) Edwards. He attended the common schools.
Career.
Edwards was a prominent farmer and merchant in Montgomery County, Maryland. For about twenty-five years, he lived at Mount Pleasant farm, which was nine miles from the Montgomery County court house. He served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates for several years. He was a delegate to the Maryland State Convention of 1788, to vote whether Maryland should ratify the proposed Constitution of the United States. He was a mentor to William Wirt, who later became the longest serving Attorney General of the United States.
In 1795, after the resignation of Representative Uriah Forrest, Edwards was elected as a Pro-Administration candidate to represent the 3rd district of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives. He served just two months before he was succeeded by Jeremiah Crabb.
Later life.
Late in life, Edwards migrated westward to the new settlement of Elkton in Todd County, Kentucky. Here, he built a new house, named Edwards Hall, in 1821. The house remained in Edwards' family after his death; here his daughter Emily bore Edwards' grandson Benjamin Helm Bristow. Still standing, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Personal life.
Edwards was married to Margaret Beall (1754–1826), who was known as the "Beauty of Montgomery." She was a daughter of Col. Ninian Beall, an immigrant from Scotland who started his life in America as an indentured servant and ended up as a major landowner and merchant who owned Woodley Mansion. Together, they were the parents of thirteen children, including:
Edwards died on November 13, 1829, in Elkton, Kentucky.
Descendants.
Through his son Ninian, he was a grandfather of Ninian, Albert, Benjamin, Julia Edwards.
References.
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