Beverly Waugh (1789–1858) was an American who was a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

, book agent, and

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of the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

, elected in 1836.

Birth and early years

Waugh was born on October 28, 1789, in

Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is part of Northern Virginia and borders both the city of Alexandria and Arlington County and forms part of the suburban ring of Washington, D.C. ...

, the son of a veteran of the

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. At the age of fifteen, he was converted to the

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and became a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church at

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

. It is believed that he was employed as a clerk in a government office or in business for three or four years, given the excellent

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and accuracy of his accounts throughout his life. From the time he was eighteen until shortly before his death, he kept a journal which, in the end, amounted to several manuscript volumes.

Ordained ministry

In 1809, aged 20, Waugh entered the itinerant ministry of the

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. After three years he was stationed in the city of

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. For 18 years he filled a number of the most prominent appointments in the Baltimore Conference. Waugh was elected by his peers to be a delegate to the General Conferences of 1816 and 1820, representing the Baltimore Conference. For the 1824 General Conference, because he was in favor of an elected Presiding Eldership (which the majority of his conference did not approve), he was not elected a delegate. In 1828, Waugh was again elected a member of General Conference, and was, at that time, chosen Assistant Editor and

Agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

of the Book Concern of the Methodist Episcopal Church, resulting in his restationing to

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. This also necessitated his transfer to the New York Annual Conference, as the rule in force at that time constituted the Assistant Book Agent a member of that body. In his work with the Book Concern, Waugh was closely associated with

John Emory John Emory (April 11, 1789 – 1835) was an American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1832. He is the namesake for Emory University and Emory & Henry College, both Methodist-affiliated American universities. Early life an ...

, later Bishop. In 1832, Waugh was made the principal agent, through not a member of the General Conference that year. He was again a member of the 1836 General Conference.

Episcopal ministry

Waugh was elected to the Episcopacy of the Methodist Episcopal Church by the 1836 General Conference. He filled this highest office in the ordained ministry for nearly 22 years. After the death of Bishop Hedding in 1852, he was the Senior Bishop of his denomination. Waugh traveled almost constantly. He was never absent from one of his conferences. He organized the Rock River, Texas Annual Conference, with only nine members, as well as other Annual Conferences. Long before the time of railroads, his routes ranged from

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, and

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to Texas. He shared with his colleagues the responsibility of presiding over five sessions of the General Conference, some of which were the most laborious and difficult known in the history of the Church. It is supposed that the average number of preachers appointed by him per annum was probably 550, or about 12,000 altogether.

Death

Waugh visited

Carlisle, Pennsylvania Carlisle is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2020 United States census, ...

, for several days in January 1858 to assist in a revival of religion. On his return home, he was seized with

erysipelas Erysipelas () is a relatively common bacterial infection of the superficial layer of the skin ( upper dermis), extending to the superficial lymphatic vessels within the skin, characterized by a raised, well-defined, tender, bright red rash, t ...

and died on February 9, 1858, in Baltimore. The immediate cause of his death is supposed to have been an affection of the heart. He was buried in the Mount Olivet Cemetery in Baltimore, near the graves of Bishops

Francis Asbury Francis Asbury (August 20 or 21, 1745 – March 31, 1816) was one of the first two bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States. During his 45 years in the colonies and the newly independent United States, he devoted his life to ...

Enoch George Enoch George (c. 1767 – 1828) was an American who distinguished himself as a Methodist circuit rider and pastor, as a presiding elder, and as a bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1816. Birth and spiritual re-birth Enoch was bo ...

and John Emory.

Selected writings

*''Beverly Waugh's Journal''. Manuscripts from 1807, continued with gaps for many years *''A Series of Questions for Bible Classes'', with J. Emory, 1828. *''Wesley's Works'', Editor (with John Emory), 1831. *"Nature and Objects of the Methodist Book Concern", a statement in ''Emory's Life and Works'', R. Emory, 1841. *"Funeral discourse on Bishop Roberts" in ''Sermons on Miscellaneous Subjects,'' Cincinnati, 1847.

Notes

References

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