Alexander Burgess (October 31, 1819 – October 8, 1901) was the first bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Quincy The Diocese of Quincy was a diocese of the Episcopal Church in western Illinois from 1877 to 2013. The cathedral seat (home of the diocese) was originally in Quincy, Illinois but was moved to St. Paul's Cathedral in Peoria in 1963. In order t ...

Early life and education

Burgess was born on October 31, 1819, in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

, the son of Thomas Burgess and Mary Mackie. His brother George Burgess was to become the future Bishop of Maine, while his nephew Frederick Burgess, was to become the future Bishop of Long Island. He graduated from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

in 1838 and the

General Theological Seminary The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (GTS) is an Episcopal seminary in New York City. Founded in 1817, GTS is the oldest seminary of the Episcopal Church and the longest continuously operating Seminary in the Anglican Communi ...

in 1841.

Ordained ministry

Burgess was ordained to the diaconate on November 3, 1842, by Presiding Bishop

Alexander Viets Griswold Alexander Viets Griswold (April 22, 1766 – February 15, 1843) was the 5th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States from 1836 until 1843. He was also the Bishop of the Eastern Diocese, which included all of New Englan ...

, and to the priesthood on November 1, 1843, by Bishop John Prentiss Kewley Henshaw of Rhode Island. In 1842, Burgess was assigned to St Stephen's Church in

East Haddam, Connecticut East Haddam is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut. The population was 8,875 at the time of the 2020 census. History Until 1650, the area of East Haddam was inhabited by at least three Indigenous peoples: the Wangunk, the Mohegan and the Ni ...

, while in 1843 he became rector of St Mark's Church in

Augusta, Maine Augusta is the capital of the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Kennebec County. The city's population was 18,899 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth-most populous city in Maine, and third-least populous state capital in the Un ...

. Between 1854 and 1866 he served as rector St Luke's Church in

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. In 1866, he went to become rector of St John's Church in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, while in 1869 he assumed the rectorship of Christ Church in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

, where he remained till 1878. He represented the dioceses of Maine, Long Island and Massachusetts as a deputy from 1844 to 1877, and was elected President of the House of Deputies in 1877.

Bishop

During a special convention held February 26, 1878, Burgess was elected as the first Bishop of Quincy on the forty forth ballot. He was consecrated in Christ Church on May 15, 1878, by Presiding Bishop Benjamin B. Smith.

References

*''The American Church Review'', 1878, page 627. 1819 births 1901 deaths 19th-century Anglican bishops in the United States Brown University alumni General Theological Seminary alumni Clergy from Providence, Rhode Island Episcopal bishops of Quincy Burials at Greenwood Cemetery (St. Albans, Vermont) {{US-Anglican-bishop-stub