Azel Backus (October 13, 1765 – December 28, 1816) was an American educator, born in

New London County, Connecticut New London County is in the southeastern corner of Connecticut and comprises the Norwich-New London, Connecticut Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut Combined Statistical Area. There i ...

. After having a long preaching career, he was elected as the first President of

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...

in New York. He died on December 28, 1816, in Clinton, New York, at the age of 51 and is buried in Hamilton College Cemetery.

Early life

Azel was born to Congregationalistic parents, Jabez Jr. and Deborah Backus on October 13, 1765 in

New London County New London County is in the southeastern corner of Connecticut and comprises the Norwich-New London, Connecticut Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut Combined Statistical Area. There i ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

. He lost his father, Jabez, at the age of five which resulted in devolving of his education entirely on his mother, Deborah, for several years. He went to live with his uncle, Rev. Charles Backus at the age of seventeen. His uncle, Charles Backus, was a Congregational minister at

Somers, Connecticut Somers is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut. The population was 10,255 at the 2020 census. The town center is listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place (CDP). In 2007, ''Money Magazine'' listed Somers 53rd on its "100 Be ...

. Azel was fitted to attend College under his instruction. In 1783, he entered

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

. While he was in the

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

, he grew deistic opinions and graduated in 1787 from there. He was perplexed after graduation to choose a profession, as his religious opinion preferenced him to the ministry, but he was favoring to join the army. When he decided to enter the army, his uncle, Charles Backus induced him to work in the ministry. Later he studied theology with his uncle Charles, and was licensed to preach by the Association of Tolland County Ministers on June 1, 1790.

Career

Soon after he left college, he joined as a teacher in a Grammar school at

Wethersfield, Connecticut Wethersfield is a town located in Hartford County, Connecticut. It is located immediately south of Hartford along the Connecticut River. Its population was 27,298 at the time of the 2020 census. Many records from colonial times spell the name ...

. After receiving his license to preach from Association of Tolland County, he preached at

Ellington, Connecticut Ellington is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. Ellington was incorporated in May 1786, from East Windsor. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 16,426. History Originally the area in what is now Ellington was named ...

, to several

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

s and soon received multiple invitations to preach and become their pastor. Backus, in 1798, was appointed by

Oliver Wolcott Oliver Wolcott Sr. (November 20, 1726 December 1, 1797) was an American Founding Father and politician. He was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation as a representative of Connecticut, and t ...

, the first governor of Connecticut, to preach before the Legislature, The Annual Election Sermon, as well as Wolcott's funeral. He was chosen General Association of Connecticut's Moderator in June 1808. Shortly after that, in 1810, the College of New Jersey honored him with Doctor of Divinity degree. After moving to

Bethlehem, Connecticut Bethlehem is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 3,385 at the 2020 census, down from 3,607 at the 2010 census. The town center is a historic district and a census-designated place (CDP). The town's name h ...

, he founded a select school for preparing students for College admission. Backus was elected as the first president of

in September 1812.

Personal life and death

In February 1791, Backus married Melicent Demming of Wethersfield. Backus was survived by five of eight children, including F. F. Backus, a practicing physician at

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

for many years after graduating from Yale College in 1813. F. F. Backus was a member of the

New York Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan compo ...

for four years, from 1844 to 1847. Backus fell ill due to

typhus fever Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure. ...

in December 1816. Days after his illness, he died on December 28, 1816. His wife Melicent died at the age 88 in October 1853.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Backus, Azel People from New London County, Connecticut 1765 births 1816 deaths Hamilton College (New York) people Infectious disease deaths in New York (state) American Congregationalist ministers Yale College alumni People from Bethlehem, Connecticut People from Wethersfield, Connecticut Deaths from typhus