Samuel Wolcott (1813–1886) was an American Congregationalist minister, missionary, and writer of hymns. During 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 ...

, he regularly gave public speeches about the war.

Early life and education

Wolcott was born in

South Windsor, Connecticut South Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 26,918 at the 2020 census. History In 1659, Thomas Burnham (1617–1688) purchased the tract of land now covered by the towns of South Windsor and East H ...

on July 2, 1813. He was a descendant of

Oliver Wolcott Oliver Wolcott Sr. (November 20, 1726 December 1, 1797) was an American Founding Father and politician. He was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation as a representative of Connecticut, and t ...

, signer of the

United States Declaration of Independence The United States Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America, is the pronouncement and founding document adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at Pennsylvania State House ( ...

. He graduated from

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 1833 and

Andover Theological Seminary Andover Theological Seminary (1807–1965) was a Congregationalist seminary founded in 1807 and originally located in Andover, Massachusetts on the campus of Phillips Academy. From 1908 to 1931, it was located at Harvard University in Cambridge. ...

in 1837.

Career

Wolcot was with the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions at Boston for two years. He was ordained in November 1839. The following April he went to

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

, which was then in the Ottoman Empire, where he was a missionary. During that time, he saw the bombardment of Beirut by English and allied forces and Syria retaken from

Mehemet Ali Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha, also known as Muhammad Ali of Egypt and the Sudan ( sq, Mehmet Ali Pasha, ar, محمد علي باشا, ; ota, محمد علی پاشا المسعود بن آغا; ; 4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849), was ...

of Egypt. Wolcott's experiences in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

–including his work at

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, Damascus, and other areas in the Palestine–were published in several theological books. His first wife died in Syria in 1841 and his health began to decline, so he returned to the United States in 1843. He then began his work as a pastor, which extended over 30 years. He had pastorates in

Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...

and

Belchertown, Massachusetts Belchertown (previously known as Cold Spring and Belcher's Town) is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 15,350 at the 2020 censu ...

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

;

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. He began writing hymns in 1869, when he developed a hymn while on a walk. Each stanza began, "Christ for the world we sing, The world to Christ we bring." He composed more than 200 hymns, not all of which were published. He was a public speaker, and during the

, he regularly gave speeches about the latest news of the war. His sons had enlisted in the war, including 16-year-old Edward. In 1874, he was made secretary of the Ohio Home Missionary Society and served in that position until 1882. During that time, he wrote ''Memorial of Henry Wolcott, one of the first settlers of Windsor, Connecticut, and of some of his descendants''.

Personal life

Wolcott was married first to Caroline Elizabeth Wood on September 5, 1839. She went with him to the Middle East and died in Syria on October 26, 1841. He then married Harriet Amanda (Pope) Wolcott on November 1, 1843. They had eleven children. As of 1889, ten of the children were: Samuel Adams raised stock near

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. Henry Roger was a capitalist living in Denver. Edward Oliver a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from Denver. William Edgar was a Congregationalist minister in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Herbert Walker was a lawyer in Denver. Agnes Vaile lived with her husband at

Lexington, Massachusetts Lexington is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is 10 miles (16 km) from Downtown Boston. The population was 34,454 as of the 2020 census. The area was originally inhabited by Native Americans, and was firs ...

. Mrs. Charles H. Toll of Colorado, who was the mother of mountaineer Roger Wolcott Toll. At that time, three daughters lived at home with their mother,

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 12 ...

, Clara, and Charlotte. His daughter, Anna Louisa, established the elite Wolcott School for Girls in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He returned to Longmeadow in 1882, living there until his death on February 24, 1886.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolcott, Samuel 1813 births 1886 deaths People from South Windsor, Connecticut People from Longmeadow, Massachusetts 19th-century Congregationalist ministers Congregationalist hymnwriters American Congregationalist missionaries American Congregationalist ministers American expatriates in the Ottoman Empire 19th-century American clergy

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References