Benjamin Tasker Sr. ( – June 19, 1768) was the 21st

Proprietary Governor A proprietary colony was a type of English colony mostly in North America and in the Caribbean in the 17th century. In the British Empire, all land belonged to the monarch, and it was his/her prerogative to divide. Therefore, all colonial prope ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...

from 1752 to 1753. He also occupied a number of other significant colonial offices, including, on various occasions, being elected

Mayor of Annapolis The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term. List of Mayors of Annapolis *1708–1720 Amos Garrett *1720–1721 Thomas Lark ...

Career

Benjamin Tasker was born around 1690 in

Calvert County, Maryland Calvert County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,783. Its county seat is Prince Frederick. The county's name is derived from the family name of the Barons of Baltimore, the proprietors o ...

to Rebecca Isaacs (née Brooke) and Thomas Tasker. Tasker became a naval officer at

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

, in 1719 and served until 1742. He also served in the municipal and provincial government as: member and president of the

Governor's Council The governments of the Thirteen Colonies of British America developed in the 17th and 18th centuries under the influence of the British constitution. After the Thirteen Colonies had become the United States, the experience under colonial rule would ...

, 1722–1768; member of the Lower House of the

Maryland Legislature The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives and the lower chamber ...

, 1715–1717, 1720–1722; member of the

Upper House An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

, 1722–1766, 1768; President of the Upper House, 1734–1766, 1768; Annapolis

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

, 1720, 1754–1766;

, 1721–1722, 1726–1727, 1747–1748, 1750–1753, 1756–1757; President of the Council in 1752; acting governor of Maryland, 1753. In October 1731, Tasker was one of the founders of the

Baltimore Ironworks Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore w ...

Company. In 1740, Governor

Samuel Ogle Samuel Ogle (c. 1694 – 3 May 1752) was the 16th, 18th and 20th Proprietary Governor of Maryland from 1731 to 1732, 1733 to 1742, and 1746/1747 to 1752. Background The Ogle family was quite prominent for many centuries in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, ...

was dispatched to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

following England's declaration of war against Spain. He left Tasker with his

power of attorney A power of attorney (POA) or letter of attorney is a written authorization to represent or act on another's behalf in private affairs (which may be financial or regarding health and welfare), business, or some other legal matter. The person auth ...

and in addition "the task of supervising the construction of a new house at Belair."

Family

Tasker married Ann Bladen, daughter of

William Bladen William Bladen (1672–1718) was an English-born Attorney-General in Maryland, in what is now the United States, and briefly Secretary of that Province. He was the father of Thomas Bladen, Governor of Maryland and was the brother of Colonel ...

Attorney-General of Maryland, in on July 31, 1711. They had ten children: *William Tasker (1713-1715) *Bladen Tasker (1719-1721) *

Benjamin Tasker Jr. Colonel Benjamin Tasker Jr. (February 14, 1720–21 – October 17, 1760) was a politician and slave trader in colonial Maryland, and Mayor of Annapolis from 1754 to 1755. He was the son of Benjamin Tasker Sr., Provincial Governor of Marylan ...

(1720–1760), Mayor of Annapolis and slave trader. *Bladen Tasker (1722-1723). * Anne Tasker (1728–1817), married the much older Gov.

(1694–1752). * Rebecca Tasker (1724–1797) married

Daniel Dulany the Younger Daniel Dulany the Younger (June 28, 1722 – March 17, 1797) was a Maryland Loyalist politician, Mayor of Annapolis, and an influential American lawyer in the period immediately before the American Revolution. His pamphlet '' Considerations on th ...

in 1749. * Elizabeth Tasker (1726–1789) married

Christopher Lowndes Christopher Lowndes (baptized June 19, 1713 – January 8, 1785) was a leading merchant in colonial Bladensburg, Prince George's County, Maryland. He was named Commissioner of the town of Bladensburg in 1745, and in 1753 he was appointed one of ...

(1713–1785), merchant of

Bladensburg, Maryland Bladensburg is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland. The population was 9,657 at the 2020 census. Areas in Bladensburg are located within ZIP code 20710. Bladensburg is from central Washington. History Originally called Garrison's Land ...

and slave trading partner of

in 1747. *Bladen Tasker (1730-1731). * Frances Ann Tasker (1738–1787), married the wealthy planter Robert Carter (of Nominy, Westmoreland County, Virginia) at the age of sixteen, in 1754.

Death and legacy

Tasker died on June 19, 1768 in Annapolis. He was buried in St. Anne's Churchyard in Annapolis. His tombstone reads:

Legacy

Benjamin Tasker Middle School, in

Bowie, Maryland Bowie () is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 58,329. Bowie has grown from a small railroad stop to the largest municipality in Prince George's County, and the fifth most populous ...

, is named after him.

References

Johnston, James H., ''From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African Family'' (May 2012)
Retrieved August 2012.
Warfield, J. D. ''The Founders of Anne Arundel and Howard Counties, Maryland: A Genealogical and Biographical Review from Wills, Deeds and Church Records''
Retrieved August 2012

Notes