William Henry Porter (Sept 19, 1817-May 26, 1861) was an American minister and author. He was born in Rye, New Hampshire, Sept 19, 1817, and was one of the eighteen children of Rev Huntington Porter, formerly pastor of the church in that place. After a preliminary course of study in

Phillips Academy ("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness , address = 180 Main Street , city = Andover , state = Ma ...

Andover, Massachusetts Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...

, he entered

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 1837, with his twin brother, Charles Henry Porter, who died after completing his Sophomore year. He graduated in 1841. He studied Theology one year in the Union Theological Seminary in New York City, one year in the Theological Department of Yale College, and a few months at

Lynn, Massachusetts Lynn is the eighth-largest municipality in Massachusetts and the largest city in Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line at Suffolk Downs, Lynn is part of Greater Boston's urban inner core. Settled by E ...

, under the instruction of his father. In the Spring of 1844 he was licensed to preach On October 19, 1845 he was ordained as minister of 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 ...

church in

Litchfield, New Hampshire Litchfield is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 8,478 at the 2020 census. History Prior to European settlement, the area was populated by the Abenaki people. They were skilled with fishing and we ...

, where he remained as pastor until he was separated from the congregation on October 28, 1848; ceasing thereafter to serve as a minister. From 1854 through 1857 he served as clerk in

Boston Custom House The Custom House in Boston, Massachusetts, was established in the 17th century and stood near the waterfront in several successive locations through the years. In 1849 the U.S. federal government constructed a neoclassical building on State Stre ...

. In 1851 he united with the

New Jerusalem In the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible, New Jerusalem (, ''YHWH šāmmā'', YHWH sthere") is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city centered on the rebuilt Holy Temple, the Third Temple, to be established in Jerusalem, which would be the c ...

, or Swedenborgian Society, in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Mass. He published ''Common and Scriptural Proverbs Compared,'' 1845, and ''The Heavenly Union, or New Jerusalem on Earth'' 1850. On May 19, 1844, he married Miss Mary Frances, daughter of Hon. Paul Wentworth, of

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. He had several children, the eldest of whom, a daughter, died in 1850. He died in

Roxbury, Massachusetts Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood within the City of Boston, Massachusetts. Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for n ...

. May 26, 1861, aged 43.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, William Henry 1817 births 1861 deaths American Presbyterian ministers American Swedenborgians American male writers Yale College alumni Union Theological Seminary (New York City) alumni Phillips Academy alumni People from Rye, New Hampshire 19th-century American clergy