Katharine Byron (née Edgar; October 25, 1903 – December 28, 1976), a Democrat, was a U.S. Congresswoman who represented the 6th congressional district of Maryland from May 27, 1941, to January 3, 1943. She was the first woman elected to Congress from Maryland.

Early life

Katharine Edgar was born in Detroit, Michigan on October 25, 1902, to Mary (née McComas) and Brigadier General Clinton Goodloe Edgar. She attended independent schools during her youth, such as the Liggett School in Detroit, the Westover School of Middlebury, Connecticut, and the Holton-Arms School of Bethesda, Maryland. She later moved to Williamsport, Maryland, in 1922. The Byrons were communicants of Saint John's Church. She was a granddaughter of U.S. Senator Louis E. McComas, who represented the 6th congressional district of Maryland.

Personal life

She married William D. Byron in 1922. Together, they had five sons: She married Samuel Bynum Riddick in 1947.

Career

She was elected to Congress in a special election held May 27, 1941 to replace her husband, Representative William D. Byron, after his death in an airplane crash near Atlanta, Georgia on February 27, 1941. She advocated amending the Neutrality Act during World War II and gave one of five speeches on December 8, 1941, in favor of President Franklin Roosevelt's declaration of war on Japan. She did not seek re-election in 1942 and retired in Washington, D.C.

Death

Byron died at Georgetown University Hospital on December 28, 1976. She is interred in Riverview Cemetery in Williamsport, Maryland.