Reuben Post (January 17, 1792 – September 24, 1858) was a

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 ...

clergyman who served two separate terms as Chaplain of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

(1824 and 1831) and also served as

Chaplain of the Senate The chaplain of the United States Senate opens each session of the United States Senate with a prayer, and provides and coordinates religious programs and pastoral care support for senators, their staffs, and their families. The chaplain is appoi ...

of the United States (1819).

Early life

Post was born January 17, 1792, in

Cornwall, Vermont Cornwall is a town in Addison County, Vermont, United States. It was founded November 3, 1761. The population was 1,207 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Geography Cornwall is located in south-central Addison County, in the Champlain ...

, the son of Roswell and Martha (Mead) Post.Catalogue of the officers and students of Middlebury College in Middlebury, 1915, page 34. He graduated from

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

, Vermont, in 1814, then studied for the ministry at

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of ...

.A History Of New England, Volume 2, edited by R. H. Howard, Henry E. Crocker; p 258

Ministry

Post was ordained in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

on June 24, 1819. He was immediately installed as the second pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Washington D.C., succeeding Rev. John Brackenridge, D.D.

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...

was a regular worshiper there during Post's tenure. On December 9, 1819, Post was named

. On December 6, 1824, and again on December 5, 1831, Rev. Reuben Post was named Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives. Post continued at First Presbyterian Church until June 24, 1836, when he was called to serve the Circular Church in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. His inaugural sermon at the Circular Church was from Acts 10:29.

Personal life

Reuben Post married Harriet Moffitt, a granddaughter of

Richard Henry Lee Richard Henry Lee (January 20, 1732June 19, 1794) was an American statesman and Founding Father from Virginia, best known for the June 1776 Lee Resolution, the motion in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from ...

, on January 7, 1823. Their children were: William, Harriet Lee (Mrs. Henry L. Pinckney), Emily, Frances, and Richard Henry Lee Post.

Later years

Post served as pastor of the Circular Church for 23 years. He was also president of the board of supervisors of the high school in Charleston. In 1858, Post took a vacation to his native

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

; while there a

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

epidemic broke out in Charleston. Post returned at once to care for members of his congregation, and soon fell victim himself and died in the 23rd year of his pastorate there. A memorial tablet was placed in the church and his gravestone is in the church courtyard, along with those of his wife and daughter—they are in the shapes of chess pieces: a king, a queen and a rook.The Circular Church: Three Centuries of Charleston History, by Joanne Calhoun, page 73.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Post, Reuben 1792 births 1858 deaths People from Cornwall, Vermont American Presbyterian ministers Chaplains of the United States House of Representatives Chaplains of the United States Senate Middlebury College alumni Princeton Theological Seminary alumni 19th-century American clergy