HOWARD, John Eager, (father of Benjamin Chew Howard), a Delegate and a Senator from Maryland; born at ‘Belvedere,’ near Baltimore, Md., June 4, 1752; was instructed by private tutors; served throughout the Revolutionary War, beginning as a captain and holding the rank of colonel when peace was declared; was voted a medal and the thanks of Congress for gallantry at the Battle of Cowpens 1781; Member of the Continental Congress 1788; Governor of Maryland 1789-1791; member, State senate 1791-1795; elected as a Federalist 1796 to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Richard Potts; reelected on December 9, 1796 and served from November 21, 1796, to March 3, 1803; served as President pro tempore of the Senate during the Sixth Congress; offered the position of Secretary of War by President George Washington, but declined; also declined a commission as brigadier general in the expected war with France in 1798; unsuccessful Federalist candidate for vice president in 1816; died at ’Belvedere,’ near Baltimore, Md., October 12, 1827; interment in Old St. Paul’s Cemetery, Baltimore, Md.