Ann Elizabeth Tottenham (born July 21, 1940) is a retired bishop of the Anglican Church of Canada. She is the oldest child of

Charles Tottenham, 8th Marquess of Ely Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

who emigrated to

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. Although entitled to the style ''Lady Ann Tottenham'', she does not use this. Her brother is

John Tottenham, 9th Marquess of Ely Marquess of Ely, of the County of Wexford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Charles Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely. He was born Charles Tottenham, the son of Sir John Tottenham, 1st Baronet, who had been created a b ...

. Tottenham was the second Anglican woman to be elected as a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

in Canada, in the Diocese of Toronto. She served until her retirement in 2005.

Teacher

She was educated at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

Trinity College, Toronto Trinity College (occasionally referred to as The University of Trinity College) is a college federated with the University of Toronto, founded in 1851 by Bishop John Strachan. Strachan originally intended Trinity as a university of strong Angl ...

and a seminary in New York. In the late 1960s she became an Anglican nun for three years before becoming a teacher. She became the headmistress of

Bishop Strachan School The Bishop Strachan School (BSS; Strachan pronounced "Strawn") is an Anglican day and boarding school for girls in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school has approximately 900 students, including 80 boarding students, ranging from Junior Kindergar ...

, a private school with Anglican links, in Toronto from 1981 to 1995.

Religious life

Tottenham was ordained in 1983 and, after leaving teaching, was the

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-ele ...

priest in two parishes, St. George's,

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, and St. Saviour's,

Orono, Ontario Orono is a community in the Municipality of Clarington, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the southern stretch of Highway 35/115, approximately east of Toronto. History The town was founded in 1832. A post office was opened at Orono in July 1 ...

."Dioceses elect Three Bishops", Anglican Journal, September 1997
/ref> In 1997, she was elected as a suffragan bishop with responsibility for the Credit Valley area of the Diocese of Toronto. She was the second woman to be elected an Anglican bishop in Toronto and Canada. She succeeded the first Canadian Anglican woman to become a bishop,

Victoria Matthews Victoria Matthews (born 1954) is a Canadian Anglican bishop. From 2008 until 2018, she served as Bishop of Christchurch in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. In 1994, she became the first woman ordained bishop in the A ...

, as Credit Valley area bishop. She retired in 2005, but in 2007 was appointed Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of Niagara and served part-time in this role until the retirement of Bishop Ralph Spence in 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tottenham, Ann 1940 births Living people Women Anglican bishops 21st-century Anglican Church of Canada bishops Trinity College (Canada) alumni University of Toronto alumni Daughters of British marquesses Anglican bishops of Toronto