Pearce, James Alfred, 1805-1862

William Pearce, the ancestor of the family was granted the majority of present day Colchester lands in Kent county, Maryland, around 800 acre, in 1778. The farm was at first used for tobacco production and by the early 1700s William Pearce had switched to grains, vegetables and fruit production. Gideon Pearce, his descendant, was operating a ferry from the northern-most point of Colchester Farm across to the Cecil County. James Alfred Pearce, representative and senator, was the grandson of James A. Pearce, Sr., the son of Gideon Pearce, and a nephew of James Alfred Pearce. He graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1822. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1824. He was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1831, in 1835 to congress as a Democrat, and he served, with the exception of one term, 1839-41, until 1843, when he was chosen to the United States senate, where he remained until his death. During his long service in the senate he was especially interested in the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution. James Alfred Pearce took a deep interest in educational matters, and in 1832 was elected one of the governors of Washington College. Convinced that he was more useful in the Senate, he declined two positions offered him by President Fillmore. James Alfred Pearce's name was repeatedly mentioned for the presidency.

James Alfred Pearce, Sr., was the father of James Alfred Pearce and of Gideon Pearce, who was Court Justice in Maryland from 1760 to 1764, and 1774, Commissioner of Tax, 1777-1781, and served in the Lower House of the State Legislature, 1782-1785.