George PETER, Congress, MD (1779-1861)

PETER, George, a Representative from Maryland; born in Georgetown, Md. (now the District of Columbia), September 28, 1779; pursued classical studies and was graduated from Georgetown College; at the age of fifteen joined the Maryland troops in the campaign against the Whisky Insurrectionists in 1794, but at the request of his parents, was sent home; entered the army as second lieutenant in the Ninth Infantry in July 1799; transferred to the artillery and in May 1808 organized and commanded the first light battery of artillery in the country; resigned June 11, 1809; engaged in agricultural pursuits; served as a major of volunteers in the War of 1812; elected as a Federalist to the Fourteenth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Alexander C. Hanson; reelected as a Federalist to the Fifteenth Congress and served from October 7, 1816, to March 3, 1819; served in the state house of delegates 1819-1823; elected as a Jacksonian to the Nineteenth Congress (March 4, 1825-March 3, 1827); unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1826 to the Twentieth Congress; resumed agricultural activities; commissioner of public works of Maryland in 1855; retired to his plantation; died near Darnestown, Montgomery County, Md., June 22, 1861; interment in Oak Hill Cemetery, Georgetown, D.C.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present