Arthur Raymond McKinstry (July 26, 1894 – December 25, 1991) was the American bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Delaware The Episcopal Church in Delaware, formerly known as the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware, is one of 108 dioceses making up the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It consists of 33 congregations or parishes in an area the same as the St ...

from 1939 to 1954. He was elected November 15, 1938; consecrated February 17, 1939; and retired on December 31, 1954.

Personal life

McKinstry was born in

Greeley, Kansas Greeley is a city in Anderson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 273. History Early History Nomadic Native Americans, perhaps the Wichita as early as the 1400s and the Osage by the 1700s, ...

, United States, to Leslie Irwin and Cevilla (Surbeck) McKinstry, He was born with a spinal curvature. He received his elementary schooling in

Chanute, Kansas Chanute () is a city in Neosho County, Kansas, United States. Founded on January 1, 1873, it was named after railroad engineer and aviation pioneer Octave Chanute. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,722. Chanute is home ...

. He later went to

Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is ...

where he was a founding member of the Sigma Pi fraternity chapter and served as chapter secretary. He was an organist for the college choir, the pianist for the

Glee Club A glee club in the United States is a musical group or choir group, historically of male voices but also of female or mixed voices, which traditionally specializes in the singing of short songs by trios or quartets. In the late 19th century it w ...

, and the director of the Puff and Powder club. He received two degrees from Kenyon: a

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's d ...

in 1918 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

in 1920. He also attended Harvard, and received the B.D. and S.T.B. degrees from the

Episcopal Theological School 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 Stat ...

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston ...

. The University of the South conferred a Doctor of Divinity degree upon him in 1937. He married Isabelle Van Dorn, of

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, in 1920; they had three daughters (Isabelle, Margaret, and Barbara) and two sons (James and Arthur). His wife, Isabelle, would die in 1971 and he would later marry Margery Robinson Vannerson (whose first husband Walter L. Vannerson also died in 1971). Margery would die in 1988.

Professional life

Rev. McKinstry was ordained a deacon in 1919 and a priest in 1920. His early assignments had him serve as chaplain of Bethany College, at Grace Cathedral in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeast Kansas, in the Central U ...

, and at the Church of the Incarnation in Cleveland, Ohio. He was elected deputy to represent the Diocese of Texas at the Episcopal General Conventions in 1931, 1934, and 1937. Before his election as bishop, McKinstry served as rector in two congregations that brought him into contact with two future presidents of the United States. As rector of St. Paul's Church,

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

from 1927 until 1931, he developed a friendship with

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. In 1934, as rector of St. Mark's Church in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, McKinstry conducted the wedding of

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

and

Lady Bird Johnson Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Johnson (''née'' Taylor; December 22, 1912 – July 11, 2007) was First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 as the wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson. She previously served as Second Lady from 1961 to 1963 whe ...

. From 1928 to 1931 he served as the chaplain for the New York State Senate. In 1948 he attended the

Lambeth Conference The Lambeth Conference is a decennial assembly of bishops of the Anglican Communion convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The first such conference took place at Lambeth in 1867. As the Anglican Communion is an international association ...

References

Sources

External links

Arthur R. Mckinstry, 97; Bishop In Del. Officiated At LBJ's Wedding
1894 births 1991 deaths People from Anderson County, Kansas Kenyon College alumni Harvard University alumni Episcopal Divinity School alumni 20th-century American Episcopalians Episcopal bishops of Delaware 20th-century American clergy {{US-Anglican-bishop-stub