The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1917-01-05
DEATHS.
DR.. R. W. Sylvester

DR.. Richard William Sylvester, whom
declining health in 1912 forced to retire
after 20 years presidency of the Mary
land Agricultural College. at Collegs
Park, Md, died shortly after noon Sun
day from pneumonia at the Unior
Protestant Infrmary, in Baltimore.
Dr. Sylvester became i'll Wednesday
of last week and was taken at once
from his home at Aquasco, to the Bal
timore hospital. 1t was seen from the
first that his condition was acute.
With him at the end were his wife, his
daughter, Miss Virginia l.. Sylvester,
and son, DR.. Richard Lee Sylvester,
chief resident physician at the Hospital
for the Women of Maryland.
Funeral services were conducted
Tuesday morning in Portsmouth, Va.
Burial being in the cemetery at Ports
mouth in which the parents of DR.. Sill
vester are inferred.
DIR. Sylvester having instinctively a
love for nature that was his birthright
as a farmer boy, being imbued with the
idea that farming should be elevated to
the degree of science and possessing
withal unusual ability to disseminate
by teaching the convictions that deter
mined his career, attained a high place
among Maryland's educators. When
he left the college after completing two
decades as it's director he had built it
M from a modest one-building school
with a handful of students to a great
institution, housed in half dozen big
structures, which was looked upon as
one of the foremost agricultural col
leges of the nation.
He had done more; he had been large
ly instrumental in planting the seed of
a new agricultural era in Maryland.
For years he had lectured before farm
ers' Institutes, he had taught the sons
of these men new and economical prln-
ciples of agriculture, and to other edu-
Gators he had given his message, ad-
dressing annually large numbers of
teachers bodies. And biennially,
throughout his administration, he had
hammered away at Legislatures until
the States appropriations for the col
lege kept up with the growing pace of
the institutions rapid expansion.
DR.. Sylvester was born in Norfolk
September 16, 1857. and was the son of
the late w. W. and Virginia Lindsay
Sylvester His father was a Virginia
plnnter of the old school and the son
spent his boyhood on the plantation.
His teaching career began when he
became instructor in natural sciences
and mathematics in Charlotte Hall
Academy, in st. Mary's county, Mary
land. In 1882 he was made full pro-
fessor at the academy. He always had
the desire to go back to farm life, in
theory if not actually, so he gladly &C.
cepted his appointmentin 1892 as presi-
dent of the State college.
On April II, 1888. he married Miss
Lucy Lee Bowen, daughter of Philand
err Bowen, Apuasco. She his son and
his daughter make up the surviving
family.
Since his retirement Dr.. Silvester's
health had not permitted him to engage
in any active pursuit. His home, not
far from College Park, is out in the
farming country that had been his de-
light and inspiration throughout his
career, and he was we'll content to
spend his waning years in reading and
keeping in touch with Maryland's de-
veloping rural life. 1t was this love
for Maryland that caused him sons
years ago to decline fiattering offer
to become president of a well-known
university on the Pacifi, Cast.
DR.. Sylvester was m.mber of the
Episcopal Church, AM was active in
the parish work at Aqaasco.