William Lightbourn Strong

William Lightbourn Strong (October 18, 1782 – August 31, 1859) was an American pastor. He was the son of Adonijah Strong, and was born in

Salisbury, Connecticut Salisbury () is a town situated in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is the northwesternmost in the state of Connecticut; the Massachusetts-New York-Connecticut tri-state marker is located at the northwest corner of the town ...

, October 18, 1782. He graduated from

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 ...

in 1802. He pursued a course of theological study and, on April 3, 1805, he was ordained and installed pastor of the church in

Somers, Connecticut Somers is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut. The population was 10,255 at the 2020 census. The town center is listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place (CDP). In 2007, ''Money Magazine'' listed Somers 53rd on its "100 Bes ...

. Here he remained until July 2, 1829. After this he was pastor of the church in

Redding, Connecticut Redding is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,765 at the 2020 census. History Early settlement and establishment At the time colonials began receiving grants for land within the boundaries of present-d ...

, for about five years. From Redding, he went to

Vienna, New York Vienna is a town in Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 5,440 at the 2010 census. The town is named after the capital of Austria. The Town of Vienna is in the western part of the county. History Vienna was formed out of ...

, where, in 1835, he was installed pPastor of the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

Church. The failure of his eyesight obliged him to leave the active duties of the ministry five or six years after this period. He then moved to

Fayetteville, New York Fayetteville is a village located in Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the village had a population of 4,225. The village is named after the Marquis de Lafayette, a national hero of both France and the United S ...

, where the last 20 years of his life were passed. He was an occasional contributor to the ''Connecticut Evangelical Magazine'' and was the author of several published discourses and of one or two of the tracts issued by the

American Tract Society The American Tract Society (ATS) is a nonprofit, nonsectarian but evangelical organization founded on May 11, 1825, in New York City for the purpose of publishing and disseminating tracts of Christian literature. ATS traces its lineage back thro ...

. He was the father of William Strong and

Newton Deming Strong Newton Deming Strong (October 17, 1809 – August 8, 1866) was an American lawyer and politician. Strong, the second son of Rev. William Lightbourn Strong, and Harriet (Deming) Strong, was born October 17, 1809, while his father was settled ...

. He died in Fayetteville on August 31, 1859, aged 76. {{DEFAULTSORT:Strong, William 1782 births 1859 deaths Yale University alumni American Presbyterian ministers People from Salisbury, Connecticut American male writers People from Somers, Connecticut People from Fayetteville, New York