History of Philadelphia, 1609-1884, Part 114

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn; Westcott, Thompson, 1820-1888, joint author
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, Pa. : L. H. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 992

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The Rt. Rev. Alonzo Potter, D.D., LL.D., was the third Bishop of Pennsylvania. He was the greatest of a great family. His brother, Horatio Potter, has long been the honored bishop of the diocese of New York. The Rt. Rev. Dr. Henry C. Potter, son of Bishop Alonzo Potter, was, in 1883, consecrated as assistant bishop of New York, and will succeed his uncle in that see ; another son, Rev. Dr. Eliphalet N. Potter, has, for a number of years, been president of Union College, Schenectady,-the late Hon. Clarkson N. Potter, of New York, was one of his family,-and the other surviving sons fill responsible public or private stations.

The ancestors of the family were English, and settled at Portsmouth, R. I., between the years 1640 and 1660. Alonzo Potter was born July 6, 1800, in the town of Beekman, now La Grange, Dutchess Co., N. Y. He graduated with honors from Union Col- lege in 1818, and almost immediately became a tutor, and later, professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy in that institution. He was baptized and confirmed in St. Peter's Church, Philadelphia, and

He was ordained to the diaconate by Bishop Hobart, to the priesthood by Bishop Brownell, mar- ried to the daughter of Rev. Dr. Eliphalet Nott, president of Union College, and received, hut de- clined, a call to the presidency of Hobart College. In 1829 he became rector of St. Paul's Church, Boston, Mass., but in 1831 returned to Union College, of which he became vice-president, and professor of Moral Philosophy. He was elected assistant bishop to Bishop Griswold, with the succession to the epis- copate of Massachusetts upon the death of that venerable prelate, but declined to accept. In 1845 he was elected Bishop of Pennsylvania. He was con- secrated in Christ Church, Philadelphia, on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 1845. The presiding bishop, the Rt. Rev. Philander Chase, of Illinois, was consecrator, and Bishops Brownell, Hopkins, George W. Doane, Mc- Coskey, Alfred Lee, and Freeman, united in the service.

The entrance of Bishop Potter upon the duties of his office in Pennsylvania was marked by a remark- able increase in the activities of the church. He very soon made himself acquainted with the condition and the wants of his diocese. On the day following his consecration he consecrated the new Church of the Nativity, Philadelphia. Within a week he began an extended visitation of his diocese, and held his first confirmation service in St. Paul's Church, Erie. Dur- ing the early years of his administration, a large number of new churches were erected in the city of Philadelphia. He infused something of his own energy and strong purpose into others, and the church received an impetus during his episcopate which has been beneficially felt ever since. Throughout his administration of the affairs of the diocese, the growth of the church was continnous, steady, and encour- aging. Just before his death the arrangements were completed for a division of the diocese, by setting off the western portion of the State as the diocese of Pittsburgh, though this was not actually accomplished until a few months after his death, under his successor, Bishop Stevens. Bishop Potter had a large, compre- hensive mind. He was clear-sighted and far-seeing, and his broad catholic spirit, and unselfish and un- tiring devotion to his work, gave him great influence not only among his clergy, but to an unusual degree among the laity of his diocese. In the general coun- cils of the church he was no less influential. His sermons and public discourses were clear, compact, and convincing. No one has ever grasped the true idea of the real position of the Episcopal Church in America better than himself, and his charges are

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among the most valuable emanations from the Ameri- can Episcopate.

All through his life he was a writer as well as a speaker, and his published works all bear traces of his profound learning, breadth of thought, and com- prehensive Christian charity. He was not a vain man. He dealt but little with the ornaments and superficial graces of oratory, but he was one of the strongest and most convincing speakers. In his treatment of special subjects he was possessed of an unusual grasp of thought, and his discourse, for instance, "On the Drinking Usages of Society," is one of the best lectures on the subject of temperance ever delivered.

Besides the numerous churches erected in Philadel- phia during his episcopate,1 he has left in the Hospital of the Protestant Episcopal Church, the Philadelphia Divinity School, and the Episcopal Academy endur- ing monuments of his spirit and influence. Of the first two he laid the foundations: the last, though established long before, was quickened by his efforts from an almost dormant condition into greatly en- larged activity and usefulness. The Church Home for Children, the endowment of the Burd Orphan Asylum, and a number of other church institutions of greater or lesser magnitude mark in this city his beneficent influence. In connection with William Welsh, he gave considerable thought and attention to efforts to organize the services of Christiau women, and though the plans devised have not yet been fruitful, they may yet be developed practically in the future.

He was thoroughly loyal. He issued numerous special prayers for the Union soldiers and for the nation, which were models of devotion, piety, and patriotism, and in his last message to his Convention, dated March 18, 1865, just before the close of the civil war, he writes, " In our longings for a return of peace, and for a reunited nation, we must turn from them whose breath is in their nostrils, or rather, we must remember whose they are, and how powerless in arms and feeble in counsel they may be, if left to the inspiration of earthly and carnal persons. We must pray more fervently and coustantly that the spirit of justice and mercy, of patience and magna- nimity, may preside over every measure; and that He who alone can make men to be of one mind, may in- fuse the sweet influences of His love and of His pres- ence into all hearts."

His health giving way under the burden of the duties of his large service, Bishop Samuel Bowman was in 1858 elected as his assistant bishop, and after the sudden death of Bishop Bowman, in 1861, Bishop William Bacon Stevens was elected as assistant bishop, and became the successor of Bishop Potter in this see.

On March 30, 1865 (leaving his diocese by special commission in charge of the assistant bishop), he

sailed from New York for California in the new steamship "Colorado." During this voyage Bishop Potter held religious services every Sunday on board the vessel. His sermons were extemporaneous, but were written out by him after their delivery. Pro- fessor Agassiz, the distinguished naturalist, was a passenger as far as Rio de Janeiro, and it was much to the bishop's pleasure when, "at the celebration of the Lord's Supper on Easter day, which the bishop administered in his state-room to a few communicants after service, Professor Agassiz came forward and knelt at the table as an humble recipient of the memorials of the death of his Saviour, Christ."

He passed through the Straits of Magellan, and touched at Callao, Peru, on June 6th. Here he heard for the first time of the wonderful events which had occurred in the preceding three months,-the fall of Richmond, the surrender of Lee, the ending of the Rebellion, and the assassination of President Lincoln. He touched at Panama, crossed the Isthmus, and con- secrated the American Episcopal Church there, and returned to the vessel. He became ill, and was un- able to leave the vessel when she arrived at San Fran- cisco on July 1st, and about noon on July 4, 1865, he died on board, of the Panama fever. His remains were brought to the East in charge of a deputation from the diocese of California, and on Friday, August 11th, the obsequies of Bishop Potter were solemnized in Christ Church, Philadelphia. His successor, the Rt. Rev. Bishop Stevens, at the request of the dio- cesan clergy, and also in compliance with resolutions passed by the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops, delivered in St. Luke's Church, Philadelphia, on Thursday, Oct. 19, 1865, a " Discourse commemo- rative of Bishop Alonzo Potter," before the General Convention, which was at that time holding its ses- sion in this city. In this discourse Bishop Stevens says, " I remember on one occasion, when a mere boy, that my mother, then a member of a Congregational Church in the city of Boston, permitted me to go one Christmas-day to St. Paul's Church. I was drawn there by a desire to see the church dressed in living Christmas green, and to hear what I had been told was strange music for the house of God. I went with all a boy's curiosity ; I listened with open ears ; a new and peculiar sensation took possession of me; I had never before beheld the service; it was all new, striking, and attractive. That was my first intro- duction to the Episcopal Church; that was the first time that I saw or heard Bishop Potter. How strange the combination of events that drew us both away from Boston, that kept us a thousand miles apart for years, and then brought me to his side again, first as a filial presbyter, then as his assistant, and now, alas ! the chariot has come between us and borne him aloft, and left me with the mantle of the ascended father ! Would to God that I might have a double portion of his spirit !"

The Rt. Rev. Samuel Bowman, D.D., who was for

1 Thirty-four new parishes in Philadelphia wore admitted to union with the Convention during his episcopate.

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some three years assistant to Bishop Potter, was born in Wilkesbarre, Pa., May 21, 1800. Among the in- teresting incidents of his early life we may record the following: "When he was but seventeen years old his father was suddenly removed by death. On the evening after the funeral, as the family group was seated in silence, made sad by the bereavement, Samuel quietly took the Bible, read a chapter, and then called upon them to join him in prayer. The request electrified the weeping group. Samuel had never before evidenced any marked religious feelings, and the family had never before united in family prayer, but from that hour the duty was continued until he left his home to study his profession."

When he was a lad the news came to the village that a clergyman of the Protestant Episcopal Church was to visit Wilkesbarre, and would hold there a church service. At the hour when the stage was expected to arrive quite a number of the citizens assembled to meet him. It was quite a patriarchal scene. The oldest men of the place were there to give a welcome to the coming stranger. The young clergyman was the Rev. Jackson Kemper (afterward missionary bishop of the Northwest). Under the auspices of the Society for the Advancement of Christianity in Pennsylvania, he made a missionary tour through that part of the State in the summer of 1814. He was invited to hold service in the academy at Wilkes- barre, and from his lips Bishop Bowman first heard the service of the church, at whose altar he afterward long and faithfully ministered.

He was ordained deacon by Bishop White, in Christ Church, Philadelphia, on Aug. 25, 1823, and advanced to priest's orders by the same bishop in 1824. After having had temporary charge of the congregation at St. John's Church, Pequea, and at Allentown, Easton, and Leacock, he was, in 1827, elected associate rector of St. James' Church, Lancaster, Pa., and in 1830, on the death of the rector, Rev. Joseph Clarkson, he became rector of the parish, and continued in charge of it until his elevation to the episcopate. In 1845, at the Convention of the diocese, which finally elected Bishop Potter, Dr. Bowman received a majority of the votes of the clergy, but not a sufficient number of votes from the laity to elect him. In 1848 he was elected Bishop of Indiana, but declined. In 1858 he was elected assistant bishop of the diocese of Penn- sylvania, and was consecrated in Christ Church, Philadelphia, on Aug. 25, 1858. The Rt. Rev. Bishop Kemper was the consecrating bishop, and among the other bishops present who united in the service were Bishops De Lancey, Alfred Lee, and Williams.

Bishop Bowman was tall and dignified and graceful in his movements. His voice was agreeably modu- lated, and he was a pleasing and effective preacher. As a pastor and parish priest he was a model. He was beloved as well as respected by the parishioners among whom so much of his life had been quietly spent. He was one of the earliest advocates of the

free-church system, and St. John's Free Church, Lan- caster, was erected through his efforts. Several other local charities are monuments of his zeal and charity.

He carried into the episcopate the same qualities that had marked his parochial ministry, and in the short period during which he held the office, by his sincerity, gentleness, amiability, and tolerant charity, he did much to allay the violence of party spirit. It is near the truth to say that probably no one of those who have held the same rank in the church ever gained a stronger hold on the affections of his clergy than did Bishop Bowman. With Bishop Potter, to whom he bore the official relation of assistant, their relations passed from those of an official character into those of the most confidential friendship and the most harmonious action. At a special meeting of the Convention, called not long after his death, Bishop Potter in his address, referring to his late assistant, said, " He was a true, devoted, and loving soul,-one of nature's noblemen, made more noble by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. . . . I had occasion sixteen years since, when elected to the episcopate of Penn- sylvania, to learn, by a communication from him, whom I had not then seen or known, the greatness of his moral nature, and the modesty of his self-appre- ciation. I mourn him as a friend beloved, as an as- sociate honored."

On Saturday, Aug. 3, 1861, while on an episcopal visitation in the western part of the State, near Titus- ville, in the oil region, in consequence of a freshet and landslide in the Alleghany Valley Railway, he un- dertook with other passengers to walk some miles toward the place he had appointed to visit. He was unable to keep up with the others, and was missing when the train reached the point of starting. He had been overcome by the fatigue and heat, and dropped dead, alone, by the side of the railway track. A me- morial stone marks the spot of his lonely death, and St. James' Church, Titusville, was erected by a general offering as a memorial of him. His remains were in- terred in the churchyard of St. James' Church, Lan- caster, under the walls of the church in which he had served for so large a period of his mortal life.

The Rt. Rev. William Bacon Stevens, M.D., D.D., LL.D., the present Bishop of Pennsylvania, was born in Bath, Me., on July 13, 1815, and was the son of William and Rebecca (Bacon) Stevens. In early life losing his father-an officer in the war of 1812-he was brought up in Boston, the home of his maternal and paternal ancestry. He pursued his earlier studies in the Phillips Academy, Andover. While young, and still prosecuting his studies as a medical student, he made an extended voyage around the globe. While at Canton, China, he rendered valuable services in the American hospital established there. On his re- turn he went to Savannah, Ga., where / after gradu- ating as M.D. from Dartmouth College) he entered upon the practice of his profession with distinguished success. He was confirmed by Bishop Elliott, in

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Christ Church, Savannah, Ga., and there first became a communicant of the Protestant Episcopal Church. He was one of the first vestry and building committee of St. John's Church, Savannah, and pursued his studies as a candidate for holy orders under Bishop Elliott. This was in fulfillment of the earlier purpose of his life, which had been changed by ill-health. He was ordained by the same prelate to deacon's, and later to priest's, orders in 1843-44, in Christ's Church, Savannah. He took charge of the church work at Athens, the seat of the University of Georgia, and was soon elected a professor of Belles-Lettres, Oratory, and Moral Philosophy in that institution. He became secretary of the diocese, and was elected a deputy to the General Convention, which met in New York in 1847. Emmanuel Church, Athens, was founded by his efforts, and he continued to be its rector until he left the State.

At a special Convention of the diocese of Pennsyl- vania, held Thursday, Oct. 24, 1861, he was elected assistant bishop of the diocese. He was consecrated in St. Andrew's Church, Philadelphia, on Jan. 2, 1862. The consecrating bishop was the Rt. Rev. John Henry Hopkins, D.D., and among the other bishops who united in his consecration were Bishops Alfred Lee, Alonzo Potter (to whom he was to be assistant), William Henry Odenheimer, Henry W. Lee, Thomas M. Clark, and Horatio Potter. Upon the death of Bishop Alonzo Potter, July 4, 1865, Bishop Stevens became Bishop of Pennsylvania.

Bishop Stevens is rather above the usual height, courteous in manners, and graceful and dignified. His voice is cultivated and finely modulated. He is a perfect master of all the graces of oratory, and few public speakers in the pulpit, the forum, or at the bar are his equals in the delivery of polished, appropriate, and felicitous addresses. His style of composition is a very happy one. Ile is always correct in his lan- guage, expressing his thoughts clearly, and is fertile in the use of appropriate illustrations.

He has always been a writer, and his published

works are numerous. Among them are contained an interesting and exhaustive treatise on the "History of the Silk Culture in Georgia," two volumes of "His- torical Collections," prepared by him as historian of the State of Georgia, a devotional work on "The Parables of Our Lord," etc. His "Charges and Me- morial Sermons," delivered upon special occasions, are valuable contributions to the history of the church. Among those which have been published are his charges upon "The Undeveloped Powers of the Church" and on "The Relations of the Clergy and Laity," and his " Memorial Discourses" upon Bishop Bowman, Bishop Potter, William Welsh, and Hon. T. N. Conyngham ; also his sermon "Then and Now," preached at the reinterment of Bishop White, and giving a résumé of church history during the preced- ing century, and an address upon " A Glimpse at the Religious Aspects of Europe," delivered by him at one of his visits to Europe.

In October, 1847, he was called to the rectorship of the request of the Convention after his return from St. Andrew's Church, Philadelphia, then vacant by the resignation of the Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Clark, In 1868, Bishop Stevens was appointed by the pre- sidiug bishop to take charge of the American Epis- copal Churches on the continent of Europe, which position he held six years. now Bishop of Rhode Island. The invitation was declined by him, and was twice renewed before ac- ceptance was given. He entered upon his duties as rector of St. Andrew's Church on Aug. 1, 1848, and Bishop Stevens is a fortunate man. Honors and emoluments have come near him and he has taken them. He has traveled extensively, seen much, is a keen observer, and converses well. He observes the usages of good society, and personal intercourse with him is a delight to his friends. His clergy have never been arrayed against him, and he has always moved along just about fairly abreast of the wishes and opin- ions of the majority of the clergy and laity of his diocese. was instituted by Bishop Potter in the following Sep- tember, the institution sermon being preached by his predecessor, the Rev. Dr. Clark. He at once took a prominent position in the diocese, and his pastorate was marked by success. The church was soon again filled by a large congregation, a debt of twenty-one thousand dollars was extinguished, and during his rectorship of thirteen years and six months, five hundred and fifty-five communicants were added, of whom three hundred and twenty-five were by con- firmation.

During his episcopate about twenty new parishes, in Philadelphia, have been admitted into union with the Convention, but this by no means indicates the entire growth of the church in this period. Some of the parishes, like St. James', have erected new and larger churches, others have greatly improved their church edifices, and many have added parish build- ings, Sunday-school buildings, chapels, or rectories. His episcopate has been marked, too, by the greatly extended and systematized missionary works of vari- ous kinds performed in this city. Besides the City Mission, he has fostered a German mission, a French church, a Spanish mission, an Italian mission, and a church mission to deaf mutes, all of which will be noticed elsewhere.

Among the many interesting episodes of Bishop Stevens' varied and eventful career we notice the following : In his Convention address in May, 1868, he says, "Three times since we last met here I have been at the point to die, -once while at Pittsburgh, whither I had gone to assist in the consecration of Bishop Kerfoot ; again in England, where I had gone to recruit my health ; and thirdly, after my return. I had planned out a system of visitations which, had I been permitted to fulfill my appointments, would

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have enabled me to make a visit to nearly every parish in the diocese. My carefully-laid plan was suddenly broken up. On the morning of Thursday, the 20th of February last, as I was returning to Philadelphia from Scranton (where I had held an ordination and con- firmation the day before), the car in which the Rev. John Long and the Rev. A. A. Marple and myself were sitting was thrown from the track by a broken rail, over an embankment thirty-five feet high, into the frozen canal, and crushed to pieces and burned. It pleased God in His wise but loving providence to inflict greater injuries on me than on any one else. My head, neck, back, breast, and limbs were much bruised and wounded, and I was conveyed in almost a lifeless state to the residence of Judge Conyngham, at Wilkesbarre, about eleven miles distant from the place of the accident. Here I was confined for eight weeks, and did not resume my duties until May."

In his Convention address of 1877, alluding to the Centennial celebration held in Philadelphia in the preceding year, Bishop Stevens says, "While hun- dreds of thousands visited the shrines of liberty in Independence Hall and Carpenters' Hall, tens of thousands visited old Christ Church, the great historic temple of the Protestant Episcopal Church, to see the place where Washington and his companions worshiped, where Franklin and his family attended service, where Bishop White, the patriarch of the Protestant Episcopal Church, ministered from the period of youth to hoary age, and where were held conventions and consecrations second in historic interest to none ever held on this continent."

On Saturday, July 1, 1876, at the close of the national centennial commemoration of the hun- dredth anniversary of the passage of the act declaring the colonies free and independent, on the 2d of July, 1776 (held in Independence Square on this day be- cause the 2d came on Sunday), Bishop Stevens officiated by pronouncing the benediction.

On Monday, July 3, 1876, the centennial com- memorative services, ordered by a resolution of the diocese of Pennsylvania, were held in Christ Church. By request of the committee of arrangements Bishop Stevens preached an historical discourse, which has since been published. There was a large gathering of the clergy and laity in the venerable edifice, a special form of service which had been set forth by the bishop was used, and the music was unusually ap- propriate and impressive. The Bishop of Central Pennsylvania was present, and took part in the exer- cises.

On Tuesday, July 4, 1876, Bishop Stevens, having been requested by the authorities in charge to officiate as chaplain on the occasion of the national centen- nial commemoration of the Declaration of Independ- ence of July 4, 1776, in Independence Square, he opened those angust services with a prayer, which he had prepared for the occasion.

On Sunday, Sept. 10, 1876, in Trinity Church,

Geneva, N. Y., Bishop Stevens officiatelens conse- crator at the consecration of the Rt. Rev. William Stevens Perry, D.D., as Bishop of lowa; the Most Reverend Ashton Oxenden, D.D., Lord Bishop of Montreal and Metropolitan of Canada, and Bishops Coxe, Kerfort, and Bissell, united in the imposition of hands. Dr. Perry, the newly consecrated bishop, was the son of a sister of Bishop Stevens.

Bishop Stevens attended, with a number of other American bishops, the second Conference of Anglican bishops, held at Lambeth, July 2, 1878. While in Great Britain he preached in Westminster Abbey the anniversary discourse before the Society for Propagating the Gospel, at its one hundred and seventy-seventh anniversary. He also preached in Canterbury Cathedral and in the Royal Chapel, Savoy, London. At the request of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the English bishops, Bishop Stevens preached the closing sermon to the Lambeth Confer- ence in St. Paul's Cathedral, London. In reference to this discourse Bishop Stevens says, in his address to his Convention here in May, 1879, " I felt that this honor was conferred on me, not for any personal merit, but for the sake of the old diocese of Penn- sylvania, the first fully organized one in the United States, and because I was the successor of the vencer- able Bishop White, who had been consecrated Bishop of Pennsylvania, in the chapel of Lambeth Palace, and who had presided for nearly fifty years over the Protestant Episcopal Church in this country.

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History of Philadelphia, 1609-1884, Part 114

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn; Westcott, Thompson, 1820-1888, joint author Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, Pa. : L. H. Everts & Co. Number of Pages: 992

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898. cn; Westcott, Thompson, 1820-1888, joint author
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, Pa. : L. H. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 992