George Park Fisher (August 10, 1827 – December 20, 1909) was an American theologian and historian who was noted as a teacher and a prolific writer.

Biography

He was born in

Wrentham, Massachusetts Wrentham ( ) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 12,178 at the 2020 census. History In 1660, five men from Dedham were sent to explore the lakes near George Indian's wigwam and to report back to the ...

. He graduated from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

in 1847, and then studied theology at

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

and the

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. ...

. He graduated from the latter institution in 1851. In 1853 he visited Germany, where he continued his theological studies. Upon returning from Europe in 1854, he was appointed professor of divinity at Yale, and he was ordained as pastor of the College church. In 1861, he resigned these positions to become a professor of ecclesiastical history. In 1901, he became emeritus professor. Fisher was elected a member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...

in 1879. He was president of the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

in 1898. He was a frequent contributor to '' The New Englander'', of which quarterly he was an editor beginning in 1866. Fisher died in

Litchfield, Connecticut Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,192 at the 2020 census. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town. There are also three unincorporat ...

on December 20, 1909, and was buried at

Grove Street Cemetery Grove Street Cemetery or Grove Street Burial Ground is a cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut, that is surrounded by the Yale University campus. It was organized in 1796 as the New Haven Burying Ground and incorporated in October 1797 to replace the ...

in New Haven.

Works

*''Essays on the Supernatural Origin of Christianity, with special reference to the Theories of Renan, Strauss, and the Tübingen School'' (1865; enlarged ed. 1871) *''Life of Benjamin Silliman, M.D., LL.D., Late Professor of Chemistry, Mineralogy, and Geology in Yale College'' (2 vols., 1866) *''History of the Reformation'', based on an 1871 course of lectures at the

Lowell Institute The Lowell Institute is a United States educational foundation located in Boston, Massachusetts, providing both free public lectures, and also advanced lectures. It was endowed by a bequest of $250,000 left by John Lowell Jr., who died in 1836. ...

, Boston, on the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

(1873) *''The Beginnings of Christianity'' (1877) *''Faith and Rationalism'' (1879) *''The Christian Religion'' (1882) *''The Grounds of Theistic and Christian Belief'' (1883) *''The Christian Religion'' (1886) *''Manual of Christian Evidences'' (1890) *''Brief History of the Nation'' (1890) *''Colonial History of the United States'' (1892) *''Manual of Natural Theology'' (1893) *''History of the Christian Church'' (1893) *''History of Christian Doctrine'' (1896) *''Outline of Universal History'' (1904)

Notes

References

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External links

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1898 Presidential Address
to the American Historical Association {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, George Park 1827 births 1909 deaths People from Wrentham, Massachusetts American historians of religion American theologians Brown University alumni Presidents of the American Historical Association Yale Divinity School alumni Yale Divinity School faculty Historians of Christianity Members of the American Antiquarian Society Andover Theological Seminary alumni Historians from Massachusetts Burials at Grove Street Cemetery