Germantown Development's Unlikely Link to Political History

The land that developers intend to transform into more than 400 residences was once home to Eugene Waters, the first Germantown resident to represent the district in the Maryland General Assembly.

A recent vote from the Montgomery County Planning Board set the stage for a developer’s plans to build 169 townhouses, 286 units of four-story apartments, and a shopping center west of Germantown Town Center, on the northwest side of Germantown Road, between the railroad tracks and Wisteria Drive. The project plan would likely go to the board in October, Patch has reported.

But in the 19th century, this land was part of the William Waters farm. Descendants built houses all along Waters Road from William’s house west. Cousins could cross fences to visit and play, and adults could help on each other’s farms. A house was built on about 60 acres of this property by the grandson of William Waters, Eugene Waters, in 1909.

Eugene Waters was elected  in 1912 and served until 1914. He was well known for his support of county home rule and for his opposition to women’s suffrage. He was a staunch supporter of Woodrow Wilson. As a local politician he was well known in the area and campaigned at the annual Barnesville picnic and other local venues. While in office he was Chairman of the Constitutional Amendments Committee and a member of the Judiciary Committee, the Education Committee, and the Public Records Committee.

Eugene was born in 1881, the youngest of six sons born to Horace and Mary Etchison Waters. Horace had three children from a previous marriage to Mary Dorsey. Now Eugene turned out to be a very smart kid, earning a “distinguished scholar in Latin” from the Emerson Institute. He went on to earn a law degree from Georgetown University in 1909 and practiced at a law office in Washington. After his stint in politics he settled down to a job as Examiner for the Interstate Commerce Commission, a position he held until retirement. He was also a ruling elder and superintendent of the Sunday School at Neelsville Presbyterian Church.

The house that he built was a stately three story home with 12 rooms and imposing 8-foot tall windows. The house sat on Waters Road near the railroad tracks and could be seen for many years on the west side of Germantown Road, just north of the bridge crossing the railroad. It was to this house that he brought his bride, Eloise Clagett in 1917.

Together they raised two girls and two boys and had a prosperous small farm. Eloise Waters was known for the fabulous flower gardens that decorated the front yard and lined the edge of the tennis court they built for the children. On the farm there was also a barn, chicken house, hog shed, and storage buildings.

Every weekday Eugene would board the train a block away from his house and travel to work in Washington — starting a trend that is very popular among Germantown residents today.

He sold the farm in 1953 to Dr. Martens, a researcher at the National Institute of Health, and moved to a smaller house in Germantown. The property is still owned by the Martens family. The barn, tennis court and outbuildings were razed soon after the transfer of property, but the house was not torn down until fall 2005.

Eugene Waters died in 1971, and his wife Eloise in 1977.