William McKendree was the fourth Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church

Methodist Episcopal Church

The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...

, and the first Methodist 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...

 born in the United States. He was elected in 1808.

Early years

William was born in King William County, Virginia

King William County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,146 people, 4,846 households, and 3,784 families residing in the county. The population density was 48 people per square mile . There were 5,189 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile...

, the son of John and Mary McKendree. His parents were both of Scottish

Scottish people

The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...

 ancestry.

As a young man, McKendree served in the Virginia militia

Virginia Militia

The Virginia militia is an armed force composed of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia capable of bearing arms. The Virginia militia was established in 1607 as part of the British militia system. Militia service in Virginia was compulsory for all free males...

 during the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

. He entered the ranks as a private

Private (rank)

A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...

, but eventually served as an adjutant

Adjutant

Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...

 in the commissary

Commissary

A commissary is someone delegated by a superior to execute a duty or an office; in a formal, legal context, one who has received power from a legitimate superior authority to pass judgment in a certain cause or to take information concerning it.-Word history:...

 department. He was present at the siege of Yorktown

Siege of Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...

 and the surrender of Lord Cornwallis. After the war, he returned to private life.

William was converted to Christ in 1787. Shortly thereafter he began conversing with his friends on the subject of the Christian faith and making them the subjects of his fervent prayers

Prayers

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. He soon volunteered to take part in public religious meetings, and his addresses produced a powerful effect.

Ministry

In 1788, while living in Brunswick County, Virginia

Brunswick County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,419 people, 6,277 households, and 4,312 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 7,541 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...

, William was received on trial into the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Unusually, he was admitted without first obtaining a License to Preach

License to Preach (Methodist)

A License to Preach in Methodist and related churches was the official authorization of a person to preach the Gospel and to do other tasks of ministry so authorized...

 and without anyone's recommendation. Bishop Francis Asbury

Francis Asbury

Bishop Francis Asbury was one of the first two bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, now The United Methodist Church in the United States...

 appointed him as junior preacher

Preacher

Preacher is a term for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies. A preacher is distinct from a theologian by focusing on the communication rather than the development of doctrine. Others see preaching and theology as being intertwined...

 to Mecklenburg

Mecklenburg

Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...

 circuit and he served for several years on neighboring circuits.

The Rev. McKendree continued as an itinerant preacher until November 1792, when, having been influenced by Mr. O'Kelly to join in certain measures of pretended reform

Reform

Reform means to put or change into an improved form or condition; to amend or improve by change of color or removal of faults or abuses, beneficial change, more specifically, reversion to a pure original state, to repair, restore or to correct....

, he was greatly disappointed by their failure at the General Conference. Mr. O'Kelly withdrew from the M.E. Church. Mr. McKendree, sympathizing with him, sent in his resignation as a minister. But the Conference agreed that he might still preach among the Methodist societies.

Rev. McKendree soon obtained leave to travel with Bishop Asbury, that he might ascertain for himself whether his impressions had been well founded. In a short time he was convinced he had been deceived. He therefore devoted himself to a careful examination of the Rules and Discipline of the Church as drawn up by John Wesley

John Wesley

John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...

, and as established by the General Conference in the U.S.A. McKendree became fully convinced both of their harmony with the primitive church and of their particular adaptedness to the circumstances and wants of this nation.

In 1793 the Rev. McKendree was sent to South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, but returned the next year. For the next three years, his circuit was vast—extending from Chesapeake Bay

Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...

 to the Blue Ridge

Blue Ridge Mountains

The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...

 and Alleghany Mountains. In 1796 he became Presiding Elder. In 1798, he was appointed to the Baltimore conference, and in 1800 he went with Bishop Asbury and Bishop Richard Whatcoat

Richard Whatcoat

Richard Whatcoat , was the third Bishop of the American Methodist Episcopal Church.-History:Whatcoat was born in Gloucestershire, England and, although reared in the Church of England, became a Methodist at age 22...

 to the Western Conference, which met that year at Bethel, Kentucky.

Rev. McKendree was appointed the Presiding Elder of the Kentucky-Holston District, 1800-01. In 1801, the conference sent McKendree to oversee the church's efforts in Southeastern Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

, Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

, and western Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

 and part of Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. He subsequently became Presiding Elder on the Cumberland

Cumberland, Maryland

Cumberland is a city in the far western, Appalachian portion of Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Allegany County, and the primary city of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 20,859, and the metropolitan area had a...

 District. He served as a circuit preacher in addition to his organizational efforts, becoming a respected figure in the region. He was the leader of the Great Revival

Second Great Awakening

The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...

 in the West.

As bishop

The Rev. William McKendree became widely know and most highly esteemed because of his popular talents in the pulpit and his faithful attention to every part of his work. Consequently, the 1808 General Conference of the M.E. Church, meeting in Baltimore, elected him to the office of Bishop. Indeed, when called to preach before the General Conference, such was the power and unction connected with his sermon

Sermon

A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...

, that Bishop Asbury was quoted as having said at its close, "That sermon will make McKendree bishop."

From that time, then, Bishop McKendree traveled with Bishop Asbury, or alone, over every part of the Church. His first episcopal tour of 1,500 miles extended through Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, and Illinois. After 1816 he was Senior Bishop for nineteen years. In 1830, he lent his support to the Lebanon Seminary, Lebanon, Illinois

Lebanon, Illinois

Lebanon is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,523 at the 2000 census. Like many other places in "Little Egypt" or Southern Illinois, Lebanon was named after the Middle Eastern country of the same name. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St...

. As a result, the school chose to change its name to McKendree University.

Bishop McKendree never married. His family had moved to Sumner County, Tennessee

Sumner County, Tennessee

Sumner County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 130,449. Its county seat is Gallatin, but its largest town is Hendersonville...

 about 1810. So when the bishop was not traveling, he also called that area home. He died 5 March 1835 at the home of his brother, Dr. James McKendree, in Sumner County near Nashville

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

. One of his last expressions was said to have been, "All is well."

Legacy

Bishop Matthew Simpson wrote of Bishop McKendree:

He was a man of great energy and genius, and was deeply pious and modest almost to timidity. His mind was clear and logical, his knowledge varied and extensive, his imagination lively but well regulated, and his eloquence was unusually powerful. He was careful in the administration of discipline, and intruduced system into all the operations of the church.

Bishop McKendree's influence was patent everywhere, but especially was he regarded in the West. He had given years of earnest labor to establishing Methodism on the western frontier. He therefore felt a deep and abiding interest in the success thereof. He thus earned the nickname "Father of Western Methodism", and was considered one of the greatest Bishops of the M.E. Church.

People named for Bishop McKendree include William McKendree Springer

William McKendree Springer

William McKendree Springer was a United States Representative from Illinois.He was born near New Lebanon, Sullivan County, Indiana, May 30, 1836; moved to Jacksonville, Illinois, with his parents in 1848; attended the public schools in New Lebanon and Jacksonville and the Illinois College at...

, William McKendree Robbins, and William McKendree Gwin.

External links

• Ohio History Central web site (Ohio Historical Society).