Christopher Edwards Gadsden (November 25, 1785 – June 24, 1852) was the fourth

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

Early life

Gadsden was born in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

in 1785, the son of Phillip Gadsden and his wife, Catherine Edwards.Sprague, 510 He was a grandson of

Christopher Gadsden Christopher Gadsden (February 16, 1724 – August 28, 1805) was an American politician who was the principal leader of the South Carolina Patriot movement during the American Revolution. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress, a brigadier ...

, the

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

leader. As a youth, he attended both the Episcopal Church of his father and his mother's

Congregational Church Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

. Beginning in his junior year, Gadsden attended

Yale University 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 wo ...

, graduating in 1804.Sprague, 511 He was ordained deacon in the Episcopal Church in 1807 by Bishop Moore, and in 1810 was ordained priest by Bishop Madison.

Career

Soon thereafter, he became rector of St. John's Church in Berkeley County, South Carolina.Dexter, 656 In 1814, Gadsden became rector of St. Philip's Church in Charleston, the oldest congregation in the diocese. He received a

doctorate of divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

the following year from South Carolina College. In 1840, after the death of Bishop Bowen, a dispute arose in the diocese over who would succeed him. Gadsden was elected, and was consecrated bishop in Trinity Church in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

.Sprague, 512 Gadsden was the

35th Military units *35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force *35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I *35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 July 1 ...

bishop in the ECUSA, and was consecrated by

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 ...

George Washington Doane George Washington Doane (May 27, 1799 – April 27, 1859) was an American churchman, educator, and the second bishop in the Episcopal Church for the Diocese of New Jersey. Early life and career Doane was born in Trenton, New Jersey. He gradu ...

, and

Samuel Allen McCoskry Samuel Allen McCoskry (November 9, 1804 - August 1, 1886), was the first Bishop of Michigan in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, but was deposed by the House of Bishops. Biography Samuel McCoskry was born in Carlisle, Pennsyl ...

. Gadsden was active in expanding the membership of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina, usually visiting each congregation once a year. In 1852, at the diocese convention, he announced that ill health would prevent him from continuing his ministry, and he died shortly thereafter, in June of that year.

Personal life

He married Eliza Bowman in 1816.Sprague, 513 She died in 1826, and Gadsden remarried in 1830 to Jane Dewees, the youngest daughter of William Dewees. He had no children by his first marriage, but had eight with his second wife.

Notes

References

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External links

Web site of the Episcopal Church

Web site of the Diocese of South Carolina
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gadsden, Christopher Edwards 1785 births 1852 deaths Clergy from Charleston, South Carolina Episcopal bishops of South Carolina Yale University alumni 19th-century American Episcopalians