John Moses Morris (April 27, 1837 – November 27, 1873) was an American minister, author, and newspaper editor. Morris, son of Moses and Laura W. Morris, was born in Wethersfield, Conn., April 27, 1837. He graduated

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, ...

in 1860. In November 1860, he entered the Divinity School of Yale College, and remained there until February, 1862. On April 25, he was ordained in

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

as an Evangelist and accepted an appointment as Chaplain of the 8th Connecticut Volunteers. In this position, which he occupied until September 1863, he shrank from no service or exposure, however severe. On his resignation he returned to New Haven and conducted the newspaper the '' Connecticut War Record'' until the close of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. He then began the compilation of a ''History of Connecticut during the Civil War'', which was completed in conjunction with W. A. Croffut, and was published in 1868 (pp. 891, 8vo.) In the meantime he became in 1865 assistant clerk of the Connecticut House of Representatives, and in 1866 clerk of the same body. In 1867 he was clerk of the

Connecticut State Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Sena ...

, and at the close of this service went to Washington as private secretary to Senator

Orris S. Ferry Orris Sanford Ferry (August 15, 1823 – November 21, 1875) was a Republican American lawyer and politician from Connecticut who served in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate. He was also a brigadier general ...

. In October 1868, he established the '' Charleston Weekly Republican'', which he conducted as editor for two years, it becoming a daily paper after August 1869. In March 1869, he was elected executive clerk of the

Secretary of the United States Senate The secretary of the Senate is an officer of the United States Senate. The secretary supervises an extensive array of offices and services to expedite the day-to-day operations of that body. The office is somewhat analogous to that of the clerk ...

, which position he held until his death. During the winter of 1870–71 he purchased the '' Washington Chronicle'' and continued as principal stockholder and editor-in-chief until June 1872, when he withdrew from the management on account of declining health. He died in Washington, of consumption, November 27, 1873, aged 36 years. He married, December 31, 1863, Miss Augusta R. Griswold, of Wethersfield, who survived him.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, John Moses 1837 births 1873 deaths People from Wethersfield, Connecticut Yale Divinity School alumni American evangelists American newspaper editors American male non-fiction writers Yale College alumni