Edwin Warfield - Political Career

Political Career

In 1874, Warfield was appointed to the office of Register of Wills for Howard County to fill a vacancy. He was elected to a full six-year term the following year, and served until 1881. He was appointed to the Maryland Senate following the resignation of Arthur Pue Gorman, was re-elected in 1883, and served as President of the Maryland Senate during the 1886 session.

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. He also founded a bank in the city, where he worked until 1890.

During the 1884 Presidential election, Warfield made significant contributions to the campaign of Grover Cleveland in Maryland. Following the election of Cleveland, he appointed Warfield to serve as Surveyor of the Port of Baltimore beginning April 5, 1885. Warfield served in that position until May 1, 1890, after the Republicans returned to power. In 1890, Warfield married Emma Nicodemus, with whom he had three daughters and one son.

In 1890, after his removal from Surveyor, Warfield founded the Fidelity and Deposit Company in Baltimore where he served as president until his death. He was chosen as a delegate to the 1896 Democratic National Convention, but otherwise remained out of politics for nearly a decade.