Samuel Ogle (c. 1694 – 3 May 1752) was the 16th, 18th and 20th

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 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 Newcastle upon Tyne (Received Pronunciation, RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the la ...

, Northumberland, England. He was the eldest son of Samuel Ogle (1659–1719), Member of Parliament for , and commissioner of the revenue for Ireland, by his second wife, Ursula, daughter of Sir Robert Markham, 2nd Baronet, and widow of Altham Annesley, 1st Baron Altham.

Governorship

Samuel Ogle became a captain of a cavalry regiment in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

. Appointed as Provincial Governor of Maryland by

Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore, (29 September 1699 – 24 April 1751) was a British nobleman and Proprietary Governor of the Province of Maryland. He inherited the title to Maryland aged just fifteen, on the death of his father and gran ...

on 7 December 1731, he was dispatched to

Colonial America The colonial history of the United States covers the history of European colonization of North America from the early 17th century until the incorporation of the Thirteen Colonies into the United States after the Revolutionary War. In the ...

in 1732.

Cresap's War

Under Ogle's leadership Maryland quickly became engaged in a border dispute with

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

. Several settlers were taken prisoners on both sides and Penn sent a committee to Governor Ogle to resolve the situation. Rioting broke out in the disputed territory (now known as Cresap's War) and Ogle appealed to the King George II for resolution. Faced with this situation,

arrived in Maryland and assumed charge of the colony in December 1732. Upon Calvert's arrival, Ogle retired from the governorship for the first time. He would do this twice more. He resumed the governorship in 1733. The border dispute would not be settled until 1767 when the Mason-Dixon line was recognized as the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania.Bayliff, William H. The Maryland-Pennsylvania and the Maryland-Delaware boundaries. Annapolis : Maryland Board of Natural Resources, 1959.

Return to England

In 1740, Ogle was dispatched to England following England's declaration of war against Spain and left

Benjamin Tasker Sr. Benjamin Tasker Sr. ( – June 19, 1768) was the 21st Proprietary Governor of Maryland from 1752 to 1753. He also occupied a number of other significant colonial offices, including, on various occasions, being elected Mayor of Annapolis. Career ...

with power of attorney and "the task of supervising the construction of a new house at Belair." In 1741, Ogle married the much younger Anne Tasker (1723–1817), daughter of

and Anne Bladen.

Belair and Horse Racing

In 1743, Benjamin Tasker built the Belair Mansion on a tobacco plantation in

Collington, Maryland Collington is a now defunct settlement in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, dating from colonial times. Collington has been subsumed by the city of Bowie. Geography Collington is located at 38°58'6" North, 76°45'35" West (38.968 ...

, now known as

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 ...

on behalf of Ogle. Upon his return to the Province, Ogle founded the "

Belair Stud Belair Stud was an American thoroughbred horse racing stable and breeding farm founded by Provincial Governor of Maryland Samuel Ogle in 1747 in Collington, Prince George's County, Maryland, in Colonial America. Colonial period Queen Mab a ...

," a stable of thoroughbred horses at Belair that would continue in operation for more than 200 years. A lover of his native country's popular sport of

thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

, Ogle is credited with introducing the sport to North America, staging the first English-style race 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 1745.

Death and legacy

Samuel Ogle died in 1752 and was interred at St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Annapolis. He and his wife Anne had five children: Anne, Samuel, Benjamin Ogle who became Governor of the

State of Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the 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; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to it ...

, Mary and Mellora. Samuel Ogle Junior High School (now Middle School) in Bowie, Maryland, was named after him.

References

External links

Biography at Virtualology.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ogle, Samuel 1694 births 1752 deaths People from Northumberland British emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies American people of English descent Tasker family Colonial Governors of Maryland American racehorse owners and breeders Colonial politicians from Maryland American planters British Army officers