PREFACE

short, the quality of the research exhibited in these biographical profiles, and the extent to
which they meet, and often exceed, the optimistic goals set by the project directors at the
beginning of the project, is attributable entirely to the patient, hard work of the research
staff; any faults in research design are the responsibility of the project directors.

We did, in the front matter to the first volume, acknowledge various sponsors and
supporters of this research, in particular the National Endowment for the Humanities, the
Department of General Services, the General Assembly of Maryland, and the Hall of Records
Commission. Our indebtedness to these agencies remains great. The number of individuals
who contributed time and information to this volume were legion, and the Addenda and
Corrigenda in particular benefited from the readers of Volume One, who took the time to
forward corrections and additional data to us. We enjoyed the consistent support of the staff
of the Maryland Hall of Records and the Maryland Historical Society. In addition, Mrs.
Ellen G. Gartell of the William R. Perkins Library at Duke University provided valuable
assistance, as did Dr. Ransom B. True of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia
Antiquities. Dr. Lois Green Carr, historian for the St. Mary's City Commission, proved
ever generous with her vast resources and incomparable knowledge of early Maryland history.
Ronald Hoffman, editor, Sally D. Mason and Eleanor S. Darcy, associate editors, of the
Charles Carroll of Carrollton Papers were helpful whenever we had problems in areas of
their particular expertise. We are also indebted to Christopher McKee, librarian at Grinnell
College. The staff at the Maryland State Law Library were unfailingly courteous and helpful
when we asked them for assistance.

Brice M. Clagett and Timothy A. Colcord deserve our special thanks for their careful
analysis of the biographies in Volume One and for much additional information, at least
some of which appears in the Addenda and Corrigenda. R. Samuel Jett also contributed
information that appears in that section as a correction to the biography of Samuel Chase,
Maryland signer of the Declaration of Independence. Robert Barnes reviewed the biogra-
phies of all early Baltimore County legislators, making suggestions and corrections that
proved invaluable. Jackson Turner Main contributed notes on Maryland legislators in the
early stages of this project, which were incorporated into the research on the men who appear
in this volume.

Among the countless individuals who in one way or another provided information and
encouragement on this volume, the following deserve our particular thanks: Mary E. Abel,
Mrs. H. W. Adams, Mrs. J. Howard Adkins, Ernest C. Allnutt Jr., Paul G. E. Clemens,
Anna Key Cumyn, James Dorsey, Richard E. Forrester, Ruth V. Greer, Dale Brooke
Gerdeman, Joseph C. Hopkins, Margaret Patterson Smith Keigler, Beatrice Kennard, Wil-
mer O. Lankford III, Evelyn Mackall, William C. Parsons, Harry M. Richardson, Orlando
Ridout IV, Garry Wheeler Stone, Hunter C. Sutherland, Margo Tilghman, Kemp Tolley,
Jean McComas Wagers, Lucille A. Wallis, Louise Waggaman Williams, and Margaret M.
Worthington. To those who contributed to this volume, who through unintentional oversight
are not named above, we offer our apology.

The Maryland General Assembly has been from its inception a vibrant, fascinating, and
at times bewildering institution. The privilege of working on the biographies of the men who
sat in the Assembly from 1637 through 1789 has been enlightening, albeit at times frustrating,
for us all. This project has established beyond doubt that much can be learned through
comprehensive biographical research, not only about the men who served in the General
Assembly but about the Assembly itself and Maryland history in general. With support from