Gustavus Scott

Who was Gustavus Scott?

Gustavus Scott was a lawyer and public official from Maryland.

Scott was born at “Westwood” in Prince William County, Virginia. He went with his brother to Scotland in 1765 and studied at King’s College in Aberdeen. He entered the Middle Temple in London, England, in 1767, and completed his law studies in 1771. He returned to Maryland in the latter year and settled in Somerset County, where he practiced law. He was a delegate to the Annapolis Convention in 1774 and 1775, and subsequently a member of the Association of the Freemen of Maryland. He was a member of the first state constitutional convention in 1776. He moved to Dorchester County, Maryland, and was member of the Maryland House of Delegates in 1780.

Scott was elected to the Confederation Congress in 1784, but did not attend. He resumed the practice of law and moved to Montgomery County, Maryland, in 1794. He was one of the commissioners to superintend the erection of the public buildings in Washington, D.C., from 1794 to 1800. He died in Washington, D.C., and was buried on his farm in Virginia. His grandson was Congressman William Lawrence Scott.