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Walter Dulany Addison (January 1, 1769 – January 31, 1848) was an
Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...
clergyman who served as
Chaplain of the United States 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 ...
(1810–1811).


Early years

Walter Dulany Addison was born at
Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...
on January 1, 1769, the son of Thomas Covington Addison and Rebecca Dulany Addison. Their home was
Oxon Hill Manor Oxon Hill Manor is a neo- Georgian house of 49 rooms, located at Forest Heights, Prince George's County, Maryland. It was designed in 1928 for Sumner Welles (1892-1961) by the Washington architect, Jules Henri de Sibour (1872-1938). It was built ...
, overlooking the
Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands of West Virginia, Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Datas ...
opposite
Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...
, where the family lived in great state, driving a coach and four with liveried outriders.Side-Lights on Maryland History, by Hester Dorsey Richardson, 1913, p. 4. Along with Mount Airy,
Belair Belair or Bélair may refer to: People *Sanité Bélair (1781–1802), Haitian freedom fighter Places Historic locations *Belair (Nashville, Tennessee), United States * Belair Development, Maryland, United States *Belair Mansion (Bowie, Maryland ...
,
Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is ...
, Stratford Hall, Mount Clare,
Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament ...
, and Carlisle House, it was one of the great mansions of the Colonial era. The Addison Plantation, as it is sometimes called, was a large agricultural plantation. Acquired by John Addison in 1687, the site was the estate of successive generations of the Addison family. When he was fifteen years old, Walter Addison and two of his brothers sailed to
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
to be educated there under the care of their uncle, Dr. Jonathan Boucher, a Tory who had returned to England during the American Revolution. Addison returned to
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...
in 1789, and studied for the ministry under the direction of Rev.
Thomas John Claggett Thomas John Claggett (October 2, 1743 – August 2, 1816) was the first bishop of the newly formed American Episcopal Church, U.S.A. (also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S.A.) to be consecrated on American soil and the first bi ...
, who ordained him a deacon in Saint Peter's Parish, Talbot County on May 26, 1793.


Ministry

Rev. Addison then became the first priest that Bishop Claggett ordained after his own consecration as Bishop of Maryland in 1793. Rev. Addison thus succeeded his uncle by serving from 1973 to 1795 as rector of Queen Anne Parish, with its two widely separated churches,
Holy Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the ...
and St. Barnabas'. Rev. Addison soon established a school at his home, Oxon Hill. In 1799 he became assistant rector under Rev. Henry T. Addison, and in 1805 he became rector of St. Matthew's Church, also known as Addison Chapel to commemorate its founder (and both Rev. Addisons' ancestor), Col. John Addison. The current building was erected between 1809 and 1816, under Rev. Walter Addison's direction.Addison Chapel, Historic American Buildings Survey, National Park Service. Rev. Addison, who freed the slaves he inherited, publicly advocated the abolition of slavery as well as the practice of dueling. He also helped found several Episcopal churches in the new city of Washington, D.C. and Alexandria, Virginia, as well as a black Methodist church in Oxon Hill. Due to the shortage of Episcopal priests in that era and area, while serving at Addison Chapel, in 1801 Rev. Addison also became the first rector of St. John's Church in Georgetown. Rev. Addison officiated at the funeral of George Washington. He also encouraged
William Holland Wilmer William Holland Wilmer (October 9, 1782 – July 24, 1827) was an Episcopal priest, teacher and writer in Maryland and Virginia who served briefly as the eleventh president of the College of William and Mary. Early life and education The fift ...
and former student (and future Virginia bishop)
William Meade William Meade (November 11, 1789March 14, 1862) was an American Episcopal bishop, the third Bishop of Virginia. Early life His father, Colonel Richard Kidder Meade (1746–1805), one of George Washington's aides during the War of Independence, ...
in their attempts to school Episcopal clergy, which eventually led to the founding of
Virginia Theological Seminary Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS), formally called the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia, located at 3737 Seminary Road in Alexandria, Virginia is the largest and second oldest accredited Episcopal seminary in the Unite ...
. In 1810, Addison sold most of the original Oxon Hill property to Zachariah Berry. At the end of the year, December 12, 1810, Rev. Addison was appointed as U.S. Senate Chaplain, succeeding Rev.
Obadiah Bruen Brown Obadiah Bruen Brown (July 20, 1779 – May 2, 1852) was a Baptist clergyman who served as Chaplain of the House (1807–1809 and 1814–1815) and as Chaplain of the Senate (1809–1810). Early life Obadiah Bruen Brown was born in Newark, New Je ...
. Rev. Addison helped incorporate the Georgetown Lancaster School Society, and also served as vice-president of the
Bible Society A Bible society is a non-profit organization, usually nondenominational in makeup, devoted to translating, publishing, and distributing the Bible at affordable prices. In recent years they also are increasingly involved in advocating its credib ...
of the District of Columbia.


Personal life

Walter Dulany Addison married Elizabeth Dulany Hesselius, the daughter of well-known portrait painter
John Hesselius John Hesselius (1728–1778) was an American portrait painter who worked mostly in Virginia and Maryland. He was the son of the Swedish-born portraitist Gustavus Hesselius. He painted the portraits of many wealthy politicians and planters in ...
and Mary Young, on June 5, 1792, in
Anne Arundel County, Maryland Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, w ...
. In 1792, the couple leased Battersea House for a year. Elizabeth Addison gave Battersea its new name, ''
Harmony Hall Harmony Hall may refer to: NRHP-listed buildings in the United States * Harmony Hall (Hampden, Maine), a 1929 religious and civic building * Harmony Hall (Fort Washington, Maryland), part of the National Capital Parks-East system * Jacob Sloat Hous ...
'', which it retains to this day. Their children include Lloyd Dulany Addison, who would later move to
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...
as a merchant and found the
Mistick Krewe of Comus The Mistick Krewe of Comus, founded in 1856, is a New Orleans, Louisiana, Carnival Krewe. It is the oldest continuous organization of New Orleans Mardi Gras festivities. Before Comus was organized, Carnival celebrations in New Orleans were mos ...
and
The Pickwick Club The Pickwick Club is a private gentlemen's club in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded in 1857, The Pickwick Club and the The Mistick Krewe were originally one group comprising two organizations. After The Boston Club, The Pickwick Club is the s ...
.


Death and legacy

Rev. Addison lost his sight during the last decades of his life. He died on January 31, 1848, and was buried in his family's cemetery at Oxon Hill. To mark the 100th anniversary of Rev. Walter Dulany Addison's ordination, his granddaughter Elizabeth H. Murray wrote, "The oldest parish record spoken of is Piscataway, or Broad Creek, parish, called St. John's, Prince George's County, contiguous to the Potomac and Piscataway Creek, dated January 30, 1693. It contains the name of John Addison, Privy Councilor. His grandson Henry was rector of St. John's for thirty years. He was educated at Oxford, and in the corner of a quaint old portrait of him in the possession of the family is a scroll containing the picture of his college. His parish would have no other rector during his life. A later descendant, Walter Dulaney Addison, became rector in the year 1801. The old Bible and prayer book used by Rev. Henry Addison in this church are still preserved in the family. In them is written: 'Presented to me by the honored Lady, my Mother.'"Elizabeth Hesselius Murray, One Hundred Years Ago, or the Life and Times of Walter Dulany Addison (Philadelphia: George W. Jacobs, 1898) available at https://archive.org/details/onehundredyearsa00eliz His mother was Eleanore Smith, daughter of Colonel Walter Smith.


References

Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Addison, Walter Dulany 1769 births 1848 deaths 18th-century American Episcopalians 19th-century American Episcopalians American Episcopal priests Chaplains of the United States Senate People from Annapolis, Maryland People from Prince George's County, Maryland