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 The Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey forms part of Province II of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It is made up of the southern and central New Jersey counties of Union, Middlesex, Somerset, Hunterdon, Mercer, Monmouth ...

Early life and career

Doane was born in Trenton, New Jersey. He graduated from Union College, Schenectady, New York, in 1818. He did additional studies in theology and, in 1821, was ordained deacon. In 1823 he was ordained as an Episcopal priest by Bishop Hobart, whom he assisted in Trinity Church, New York. With

George Upfold George Upfold (May 7, 1796 – August 26, 1872) was the first Episcopal Bishop of Indiana after the diocese's division from the Missionary Diocese of the Northwest. He is officially styled, though, as II bishop of Indiana since missionary bishop ...

(1796–1872), Bishop of Indiana from 1849 to 1872, Doane founded St. Luke's in New York City. From 1824 to 1828 he was professor of ''

belles-lettres is a category of writing, originally meaning beautiful or fine writing. In the modern narrow sense, it is a label for literary works that do not fall into the major categories such as fiction, poetry, or drama. The phrase is sometimes used pejora ...

'' in Washington (now Trinity) College,

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

. At this time, he was one of the editors of the ''Episcopal Watchman''. He was assistant in 1828–1830 and rector in 1830–1832 of Trinity Church, Boston.

Bishop of New Jersey

Doane was called as second bishop of New Jersey, serving from October 1832 to his death in 1859 at

Burlington, New Jersey Burlington is a city in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,743. Burlington was first incorporated on October 24, 1693, and was r ...

. In 1837, he founded St. Mary's Hall (now Doane Academy), to provide a classical education for girls. It was the first such boarding school for girls in the United States, in a period when numerous schools for girls were founded. The school was supported in part by a gift from his wife, Eliza Greene Callahan (married firstly James Perkins; second George Washington Doane). In 1846 he founded Burlington College, a school for boys. These fulfilled his theory of education under church control. Because of national financial crises, his business management of these schools got the diocese heavily into debt. In the autumn of 1852, a charge of lax administration was made against him before a court of bishops, who dismissed it. Doane was shown to be an able and wise disciplinarian of these schools. His patriotic orations and sermons prove him a speaker of great power. He belonged to the High Church party and was a brilliant controversialist. He published ''Songs by the Way'' (1824), a volume of poems. He also wrote hymns, and his pieces beginning "Softly now the light of day" and "Thou art the Way" are well known. He commissioned John Notman to build a chapel for St. Mary's Hall. The congregation of St. Mary's Church grew, and he commissioned architect Richard Upjohn to design a new St. Mary's Church, his episcopal seat, completed in 1856. Both buildings have been recognized as National Historic Landmarks.

Death

Doane died in 1859. He was buried in Saint Mary's Episcopal Churchyard in Burlington.George Washington Doane
, Saint Mary's Episcopal Churchyard. Accessed August 21, 2007.

Legacy

Among those whom Doane had ordained during his lifetime was Joseph Wolff, a Jewish Christian missionary. Doane's biography and bibliography, ''Life and Writings of George Washington Doane'' (4 vols, New York, 1860–1861), was edited by his son, William Croswell Doane (1832–1913). He followed his father into the clergy and was called as the first Bishop of Albany. The fact that both Doane and his son became "bishops asa situation possibly not unique but certainly rare enough to be remarked upon."James Gwynn, "Like Father, Like Son," ''Swan & Elk'' (newsletter of the Cathedral of All Saints, Albany, New York), Fall 2012, pg. 11. Founded in 1837 and now known as Doane Academy, the private school he founded is coeducational, serving grades Pre-K through 12, and has a substantial endowment to ensure its future. It was the first academic, church run school for girls in the United States.

References

Sources

* ''The Episcopal Church Annual''. Morehouse Publishing: New York (2005).
Bishops of the Diocese of New Jersey
* Doane, George Washington, Bishop of New Jersey, ''The apostolical commission the missionary charter of the church''. The Sermon n Matt. xxviii. 18–20at the ordination of Joseph Wolff in ... Newark, Sept. 26, 1837. *

External links

Doane's works online

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doane, George Washington 1799 births 1859 deaths People from Trenton, New Jersey Union College (New York) alumni 19th-century Anglican bishops in the United States Episcopal bishops of New Jersey