Jesse Truesdell Peck (April 4, 1811 – May 17, 1883) was an American bishop 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 1872.

Birth and family

He was born on April 4, 1811, in Middlefield Center,

Otsego County, New York Otsego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,524. The county seat is Cooperstown. The name ''Otsego'' is from a Mohawk or Oneida word meaning "place of the rock." History In 1 ...

. His family was of English heritage, traceable back to the 15th century and known in heraldry. Henry Peck came to America in 1637. Jesse Peck's grandfather, also named Jesse, died in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

's army. Jesse Peck's father, Luther, was a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

and lifelong class leader, whose five sons (of whom Jesse T. was the youngest) all became

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 ...

preachers. The trend in his family toward the Methodist ministry led his great-nephew,

Stephen Crane Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism an ...

, to say: "Upon my mother's side, everyone in my family became a Methodist clergyman as soon as they could walk, the ambling-nag, saddlebag, exhorting kind."

Ordained ministry

Peck was converted to the Christian faith at the age of 16. He sensed a call to preach almost immediately. He entered the traveling ministry as a circuit rider of the Oneida Annual Conference of the M.E. Church in 1832. He was ordained by bishops

Elijah Hedding Elijah Hedding (June 7, 1780 – April 9, 1852) was an American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1824. Early life Hedding was born near Pine Plains in Dutchess County, New York to parents of English origin. He was trained i ...

and

Beverly Waugh Beverly Waugh (1789–1858) was an American who was a Methodist pastor, book agent, and Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1836. Birth and early years Waugh was born on October 28, 1789, in Fairfax County, Virginia, the son o ...

. Prior to his election to the

episcopacy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, Peck served as a pastor and a presiding elder. As a bishop, he was a delegate to the First Ecumenical Conference, 1881.

Presidency at Dickinson

In 1848, he was elected the tenth president of Dickinson College, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. During his presidency, Peck was unpopular with the students. In one student prank, he was detained in an insane asylum in Staunton, Virginia, where he had traveled for a church conference. Students locked Peck in a railroad boxcar overnight and another time, shot, and killed, his dog. On top of all of these problems with the students, Peck proved to be an inadequate fundraiser for the college; in June 1851, he announced his intention to leave the institution the following year, citing his belief that he was ill-suited to the tasks associated with the job. In July 1852, he gave the address to the graduating class, entitled ''God in Education.''

Syracuse University

Though not a college graduate himself, Peck was prominent in the beginnings of Syracuse University, serving as the first chairman of its board of trustees. He developed what became, in effect, the university's first master plan: a scheme for the construction of seven buildings on land donated by

George F. Comstock George Franklin Comstock (1811–1892) was an American lawyer and politician. He was Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1860 to 1861. Personal life Comstock was born on August 24, 1811, in Williamstown, New York. He graduated fro ...

, also a member of the Board. Each building was to be dedicated to a different academic discipline. Peck's vision for the new campus was one of stylistic eclecticism; on one occasion declaring that the new university should "demonstrate the perfect harmony and indissoluble oneness of all that is valuable in the old and the new." The first building completed under this plan was the ''Hall of Languages,'' built at the summit of University Avenue in Syracuse. Nationally renowned architect

Horatio Nelson White Horatio Nelson White (February 8, 1814 – July 29, 1892) was an American architect based out of Syracuse, New York, and became one of New York State's most prominent architects from about 1865 to 1880. White designed many homes, armories, chu ...

was the designer of this

French Second Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the Second and the Third Republic of France. Historians in the 1930s a ...

structure. Peck died May 17, 1883, in Syracuse and is buried there in the Oakwood Cemetery.

Selected writings

*Sermon: ''Talent,'' in Clark, D.W., The Methodist Pulpit, 1897. *The Central Idea of Christianity, 1857. Also, revised, 1876 and later. Also Chapter V of this book a ''pamphlet'' with the same topic, 1902. *The True Woman, 1857. *What Must I Do to Be Saved?, 1858. *Sermon: ''The Life Battle,'' in The New York Pulpit in the Revival of 1858, A Memorial Volume. *Address: ''Centenary Conv.,'' Boston, 1866, Proceedings. *History of the Great Republic, 1868. *Biography of Mary Brison, in Our Excellent Women, pub. by James Miller, 1872. *Addresses State Convs, N.J., 1870, political; N.Y., 1870, Public Schools, N.Y., 1871, Political Reform. *Sermon in Fraternal Camp-Meeting Sermons, Round Lake, 1875. *Reader of the Address published by the First Ecumenical Methodist Conference, City Road, London, 1881. The preparation of the paper was largely in his hands.

Biographies

*Peck, Rev. J.K., Luther Peck and His Five Sons, 1897.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Leete, Frederick DeLand, ''Methodist Bishops.'' Nashville, The Methodist Publishing House, 1948. {{DEFAULTSORT:Peck, Jesse Truesdell American Methodist bishops Bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church Presidents of Dickinson College American theologians 1811 births 1883 deaths Religious leaders from Syracuse, New York American sermon writers Burials at Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) Methodist circuit riders 19th-century American clergy Syracuse University trustees