Henry Codman Potter
Encyclopedia
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Episcopal Church of the United States. He was the seventh Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Episcopal Diocese of New York
Episcopal Diocese of New York
The Episcopal Diocese of New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island in New York City, and the New York state counties of Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan, and...
.
Life
Henry Codman Potter was born the son of another Episcopal bishop, The Right Rev'd Alonzo PotterAlonzo Potter
The Right Reverend Alonzo Potter was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States who served as the third Bishop of Pennsylvania.-Early life:...
, in Schenectady, New York
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
in 1835. He was educated at the Philadelphia Academy of the Protestant Episcopal Church and Virginia Theological Seminary
Virginia Theological Seminary
Virginia Theological Seminary , formally called the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia, is the largest accredited Episcopal seminary in the United States. Founded in 1818, VTS is situated on an campus in Alexandria, Virginia, just a few miles from downtown Washington, DC. VTS...
, where he graduated in 1857. He was ordained deacon in 1857 and priest in 1858; was rector of Christ Church, Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city is named after Nathanael Greene, a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War...
, in 1858-1859, and of St John's Church, Troy, NY
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the US State of New York and the seat of Rensselaer County. Troy is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany and Schenectady, forming a region popularly called the Capital...
, in 1859-1866; refused the presidency of Kenyon College
Kenyon College
Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio...
in 1863 and the bishopric of Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
in 1875; was secretary of the House of Bishops in 1866-1883; and was assistant rector of Trinity Church, Boston, in 1866-1868, and rector of Grace Church, New York City, in 1868-1884. In October 1883 he was consecrated assistant to his uncle, Horatio Potter
Horatio Potter
The Right Reverend Horatio Potter , was an Episcopal Bishop in the Diocese of New York.The youngest brother of Bishop Alonzo Potter, he was born near Beekman , Dutchess County, New York on 9 February 1802, to Quaker farmers Joseph and Anne Potter...
, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York
Episcopal Diocese of New York
The Episcopal Diocese of New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island in New York City, and the New York state counties of Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan, and...
, and in 1887 succeeded him. The Rev. David Hummell Greer
David Hummell Greer
David Hummell Greer was an American Protestant Episcopal bishop.-Biography:He was born in Wheeling, Virginia, , graduated at Washington College in 1862, and studied at the Protestant Episcopal Seminary, Gambier, Ohio...
(b. 1844) became his coadjutor in September 1903, and succeeded to the bishopric after the death of Bishop Potter in Cooperstown, NY
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
, on the 21st of July 1908. During Bishop Potter's administration the cornerstone of the Cathedral of St John the Divine was laid (in 1892).
He was notable for his interest in social reform and in politics: as rector of Grace Church he worked to make it an institutional church with working-men's clubs, day nurseries, kindergartens, etc., and he took part in the summer work of the missions on the east side in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
long after he was bishop; in 1900 he attacked the Tammany mayor (Robert A Van Wyck
Robert Anderson Van Wyck
Robert Anderson Van Wyck, was the first mayor of New York City after the consolidation of the five boroughs into the City of New York in 1898.-Biography:...
) of New York City, accusing the city government of protecting vice, and was a leader in the reform movement which elected Seth Low
Seth Low
Seth Low , born in Brooklyn, New York, was an American educator and political figure who served as mayor of Brooklyn, as President of Columbia University, as diplomatic representative of the United States, and as Mayor of New York City...
mayor in the same year; he frequently assisted in settling labour disputes; he worked for the re-establishment of the army canteen and attempted to improve the saloon, which he called the poor man's club notably by his taking part in the opening (August 1904) of the unsuccessful Subway Tavern.
Family
Potter's siblings were:- Clarkson Nott PotterClarkson Nott PotterClarkson Nott Potter was an American civil engineer, then a practising lawyer in New York City, and in 1869-1875 and in 1877-1881 a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives. He was President of the American Bar Association from 1881 to 1882.-Family:Potter was the son of...
(1825–1882) was a Democratic member of the National House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
after the Civil War. - Robert Brown PotterRobert Brown PotterRobert Brown Potter was a United States lawyer and a Union Army general in the American Civil War.-Early life:...
(1829–1887) was a United States General in the American Civil War and a financier. - Edward Tuckerman PotterEdward Tuckerman PotterEdward Tuckerman Potter was an American architect best known for designing the 1871 Mark Twain House in Hartford, Connecticut. With his half-brother William Appleton Potter, he also designed Nott Memorial Hall at his alma mater, Union College, Schenectady, New York...
an architect who designed the Nott MemorialNott MemorialThe Nott Memorial is an elaborate 16-sided stone-masonry building which serves as both architectural and physical centerpiece of Union College in Schenectady, New York...
at Union CollegeUnion CollegeUnion College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as...
. - William Appleton PotterWilliam Appleton PotterWilliam Appleton Potter was an American architect who designed numerous buildings for Princeton University, as well as municipal offices and churches. He served as a Supervising Architect of the Treasury from 1874 to 1877....
(1842–1909) was an American architectArchitectAn architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
who designed numerous buildings, including the Church of the Presidents (New Jersey)Church of the Presidents (New Jersey)The Church of the Presidents is a former Episcopal chapel on the Jersey Shore where seven United States presidents worshiped. It was visited by presidents Chester A. Arthur, James Garfield, Ulysses S. Grant, Benjamin Harrison, Rutherford Hayes, William McKinley, and Woodrow Wilson...
in Elberon, New JerseyElberon, New JerseyElberon is an unincorporated area that is part of Long Branch in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The area is served as United States Postal Service ZIP code 07740....
. - Eliphalet Nott Potter (1836-1901) was a university president.
- Francis Hunter Potter was a musician and writer.
- Maria Louisa Potter (1839-1916) married sculptor Launt ThompsonLaunt ThompsonLaunt Thompson , American sculptor, born in Abbeyleix, Ireland. Due to the potato famine occurring in Ireland at the time, he emigrated to the United States in 1847 with his widowed mother, and they settled in Albany, New York. There, he found work as a handyman.-Biography:After studying anatomy...
and lived in Italy.
Henry Codman Potter married, in 1857, as his first wife, Eliza R. Jacob (died 1901). They had six children:
- Alonzo Potter (father of movie director H. C. PotterH. C. PotterHenry Codman Potter was an American theatrical producer/director and a motion picture director.-Biography:...
) - Clara Sidney Potter married Mason Chichester Davidge and later married artist Henry Fitch TaylorHenry Fitch TaylorHenry Fitch Taylor was an American artist.-Biography:He was born in Cincinnati in 1853. He studied at the Académie Julian, in Paris. He returned to America in either 1888 or in 1889, and established his studio in New York City. He was part of the Cos Cob Art Colony.He married Clara Sidney Potter...
- Sarah H. Potter (died unmarried)
- Jane Potter (married lawyer Charles Howland Russell)
- Lena Potter (married textile executive Winthrop Cowdin; she hanged herself in 1906)
- Mary Potter (married portrait painter William Henry Hyde)
He married, on 4 October 1902, as his second wife, Elizabeth Clark (née Scriven), the widow of Alfred Corning Clark
Alfred Corning Clark
-Biography:He was born on November 14, 1844 to Edward Clark, a founder of the Singer Sewing Machine Company. He married and had as his children: Edward Severin Clark, Robert Sterling Clark, Frederick Ambrose Clark and Stephen Carlton Clark, Sr....
, a Singer sewing-machine heir. By this marriage, he had four stepsons: Edward Severin Clark
Edward Severin Clark
Edward Severin Clark , along with his brother Stephen Carlton Clark, built a number of large buildings in Cooperstown, New York, including the Otesaga Hotel and the Alfred Corning Clark Gymnasium. He was one of four grandsons of Edward Clark, one of the founders of the Singer Sewing Machine...
, Robert Sterling Clark
Robert Sterling Clark
Robert Sterling Clark , heir to the Singer Sewing Machine fortune, was an American art collector, horse breeder, and philanthropist.-Biography:...
, F. Ambrose Clark
F. Ambrose Clark
Frederick Ambrose Clark was an American equestrian.Clark was the son of Alfred Corning Clark and a grandson of Edward Clark, a lawyer and later 50% owner of the Singer Sewing Machine Company...
, and Stephen Carlton Clark
Stephen Carlton Clark
Stephen Carlton Clark, Sr. DSM, was an American art collector, newspaper publisher, benefactor and founder of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.-Biography:...
.
Works
- Sisterhoods and Deaconesses at Home and Abroad (1872);
- The Gates of the East (1876), a book of travels; Sermons of the City (1881)
- Waymarks (1892)
- The Scholar and the State (1897)
- The East of To-day and Tomorrow (1902)
- The Industrial Situation (1902)
- Law and Loyalty (1903)
- Reminiscences of Bishops and Arch-Bishops (1906)
External links
- Documents by Henry Codman Potter
- www.alonzopotter.com, contains a speech by Potter.