Recently, Mid-Shore alumni of Washington College met at the Market Street Public House in Denton. Graduates of the Chestertown institution residing in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot Counties gathered at the Pub for two reasons. First, it is tradition for members of the Washington College community to celebrate the birthday of their benefactor and namesake with a toast. This revelry in honor of George Washington is observed around the country by affiliated alumni chapters each February and has received national attention as the mainstream press delights in knowing that the school often pays for the drinks. Secondly, and of greater interest to local readers is that the program offered for the evening highlighted the many Caroline Countians who attended college in Chestertown and later went on to distinguished careers and considerable notability. So in chronological order, here are a few fairly famous individuals with both local roots and ties to the school:

Matthew Driver, the man who built Willow Grove outside of Greensboro in the 1780s, may not get as much local press as William Richardson, but he was definitely an important figure in the formative years of Caroline County and the nation. During the American Revolution, Driver served as an officer in a number of militia battalions. As a civilian, he also sat as a judge in several different capacities over the course of several decades in public service to his county — not to mention frequent election to the Maryland General Assembly. In addition, Driver participated in the state convention to ratify the United States Constitution in 1788. He provided a key donation of 30 pounds to help found Washington College in 1782; this is easily tens of thousands of dollars roughly converted to modern American currency.

George Alfred Townsend attended Washington College for a time but did not graduate. Originally from Georgetown, Delaware, he went on to become a noted Civil War correspondent. Later, Townsend penned The Entailed Hat (1884), which is a well-known historical fiction account of infamous slave trader Patty Cannon — who was active throughout Caroline County and Delaware.

Thomas Alan Goldsborough remains one of the most successful people ever to hail from Caroline County. Born in Greensboro, he was elected to ten terms in Congress representing our District before being appointed to a federal judgeship by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. During his law career, he argued before the Supreme Court. As a member of the House of Representatives, Goldsborough was seen as a driving force behind the creation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. On the bench of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, he became nationally notable for a series of actions relating to union leaders organizing illegal coal mining strikes. Goldsborough graduated from Washington College in 1899.

Henry Dunning of Denton was a pioneer in the pharmaceutical industry. After working at a local pharmacy in Denton as a teenager, he decided to pursue that field as a career. Upon returning from the Spanish-American War, Dunning studied at Johns Hopkins University and then completed his doctorate at the University of Maryland. He later served as a professor at both schools. While these achievements are notable accomplishments in and of themselves, Dunning is actually nationally if not internationally known for his work in formalizing and advancing pharmacy medicine as a serious scientific discipline and respected trade. His name is synonymous with the work of the American Pharmaceutical Association as well as the company Hynson, Westcott, and [ultimately] Dunning — a firm well known for developing and marketing a number of prescription drugs and other medicines throughout the 20th Century. He was as much of a philanthropist as he was a scientist and businessman. He endowed a continuing research fellowship at Johns Hopkins, the first graduate school scholarship for pharmaceutical studies, and another fund that, upon its inception, first sent a Caroline County student to Washington College for similar academic pursuits; anyone who has matriculated there since 1940 has likely taken a science course in Dunning Hall. The Denton local gave at least $60,000 towards the building project that bears his name. Today it is a beautiful modern facility with traditional classrooms, a forty-seat computer classroom, labs, a lecture hall, and professor office space for three different scientific departments. The contributions of Dunning do not end there. In Caroline County he gave money for the construction of the original Health Department building on Franklin Street, which was built in 1951. He also donated the organ at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church across the street.

Preston icon Max Chambers was a 1923 graduate of Washington College. His résumé would fill an entire edition of the Caroline Review if documented in full, so here are some local highlights: longtime publisher of the Preston News and Farmer with additional syndicated columns elsewhere; an Industrial Arts Teacher with Caroline County Public Schools; a tomato cannery operator near Bethlehem; a 4-H Extension Agent; a Preston Volunteer Fire Department Member; a Preston Lions Club Member; Caroline County bicentennial events chair; local United States independence bicentennial events chair; local celebration of Maryland 350th anniversary events chair; organizer of the local Constitutional bicentennial stage production, A Debt of Gratitude; a charter member and longtime president of the Caroline County Historical Society. Pallbearers at his funeral were a veritable “who’s who” featuring two Congressmen, a former governor, state legislators, two judges, all three county commissioners, and myriad other leaders in an actual or honorary capacity. A plaque on the Caroline County Courthouse grounds commemorates his service to the community.

Robert Dean of Ridgely graduated from Washington College in 1931. After commencement, he sailed the world with the Merchant Marine for ten years. Upon returning to the Mid-Shore, he was subsequently elected to the first of four terms in the Maryland State Senate. During his time in office, he was instrumental in creating Tuckahoe State Park and Chesapeake College among other major local projects. He was a founding donor of the Washington College Athletic Hall of Fame and was a decorated three-sport athlete during his time on campus. In his retirement he collected and restored steam-powered farm equipment and ag implements; many of his items are on permanent display at the Museum of Eastern Shore Life near Centreville and the grounds of the Tuckahoe Steam and Gas show outside of Easton.

Writer Sophie Kerr spent much of her adult life in New York City, but did not forget her Denton roots: the short stories “Coming Home for Christmas” and “There Was A Great Camp-Meeting” as well as the novel One Thing is Certain in particular contain some very familiar descriptions of life and locations in Caroline County. Her name and legacy live on with the Sophie Kerr Prize at Washington College, which attracts national media attention when bestowed each May. Utilizing approximately $500,000 she bequeathed to the institution, WC annually awards a substantial amount of money, currently over $63,000, to the graduating senior that shows the most literary promise. Kerr did not attend school in Chestertown but did receive an honorary degree at commencement in 1942, the first time a woman was so honored by Washington College.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture building in Annapolis is named for a lifelong resident of Caroline County. Wayne Cawley, Jr., was a 1948 graduate of Washington College. He is the longest serving Secretary of Agriculture in state history. Cawley also served in World War II, parachuting into Normandy on D-Day.

Current Caroline County Circuit Court Judge Jonathan Newell graduated from Washington College with a Philosophy degree in 1982. He previously served for over a decade as the State’s Attorney for Caroline and is active in myriad civic organizations including 4-H and the Ridgely Lions Club.

If any eminent Caroline Countians with ties to Washington College were inadvertently omitted, please contact area alumni chairperson Chad Dean (’00, M’07) at 410-829-2417, charlesdean3vzw@gmail.com, or join “Caroline Past and Present” on Facebook and share the information there.