On October 31, 1740, William Paca was born on the family plantation, located along the Bush River near Abingdon in Baltimore County, Maryland. He was the third child born to John Paca and Elizabeth Smith. His ancestors had arrived in the colonies from England, though both his father and mother were born in Maryland. Since his father was a planter, he grew up in the traditional agrarian lifestyle. In 1752 at 11-years-old, Paca was sent to the Philadelphia Academy and Charity School. He remained in the area and continued his education at the College of Philadelphia, where he earned a degree in May 1759. That same year, he moved to the bustling port city of Annapolis, Maryland. As many men of high standing did at the time, Paca studied law, in his case under a man named Stephen Bordley, who was one of the most prominent lawyers in Annapolis at the time.
In 1761, William began his legal career, serving as an attorney in several county and provincial courts. Throughout the 1760s, he established himself as a successful lawyer and became further involved in politics. His establishment as a leading gentleman of Maryland society was cemented when he married Mary Chew on May 26, 1763. Over the next few years, they had three children together (though only one, John Philemon, survived to adulthood). Sadly, Mary died in January 1774.
Alongside fellow attorney Samuel Chase, Paca emerged as a leading patriot in Annapolis, speaking out against the Stamp Act in 1765 and assisting in organizing the local Sons of Liberty. He was certainly a patriot, but was better known for his power of the pen than of speech (he often wrote speeches for his friend, Samuel Chase).
From 1767 until 1774, William served as a representative in the House of Delegates. Starting in 1774, Paca represented Annapolis in the extra-legal conventions that ruled the province. Out of this body, he was chosen as one of Maryland’s delegates to the First Continental Congress. He continued his service in the Second Continental Congress and was one of four men from Maryland who signed the Declaration of Independence.
From 1777 until 1780, he served in the Maryland Senate. His role remained largely political throughout the revolution and he never held a military commission (he did help organize the defense of Maryland’s eastern shore). On February 28, 1777, Paca married Anne Harrison; however, their marriage ended a few short years later when Anne died in February 1780. In November 1782, Paca was elected governor of Maryland and he served the maximum three one-year terms (he served as governor when Congress met in Annapolis from November 1783 – August 1784. After his time as governor, he was elected to both the Senate and the House of Delegates, but chose to serve in the House.
When the Constitutional Convention convened in 1787, Paca refused election; however, he did participate in the Maryland ratification convention in April 1788. He held anti-federalist views and proposed 28 amendments to the Constitution (most aimed at limiting federal powers and ensuring personal freedoms). The Maryland convention was largely dominated by federalists and generally, his amendments were not adopted (though many of his ideas bore fruit in the first ten amendments that are today referred to as the Bill of Rights). Despite his stance, in December 1789 President George Washington appointed him as a judge for the federal district court of Maryland.
Today, William Paca’s original house and gardens still exist in Annapolis. This served as his primary residence until 1780, when he sold the property and moved to his massive estate on Wye Island, known as Wye Hall (his plantation included land on the mainland as well). On October 13, 1799, William Paca died at Wye Hall and was laid to rest in a private family cemetery. Unfortunately, over time the exact location of his burial became unknown.
This is likely due to a number of factors, to include the burning of Wye Hall in 1879, changing of the landscape over time, and even the movement of Paca family member graves. Despite this, there is a circa 1910 stone marker placed on his former property by the Maryland Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, dedicated to William Paca. This marker is located on the main land right across from Wye Island, in front of the Houghton House on the property of the Aspen Institute.