William Heathcote DeLancey (October 8, 1797 – April 5, 1865) was a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of the

Episcopal Church in the United States of America The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop o ...

and the sixth Provost of the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. DeLancey was known as a

High Church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...

man, and served as the first bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Western New York The Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the counties of Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming in western New York. I ...

. He was elected a Trustee of the

and then as the ninth provost (chief academic officer and highest professional position) of the university (1828 to 1834).

Family and education

DeLancey was born at

Mamaroneck Mamaroneck ( ) is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of M ...

, New York into a celebrated New York family descended from

Caleb Heathcote Caleb Heathcote (March 6, 1665 – February 28, 1721) served as the 31st Mayor of New York City from 1711 to 1713. Early life Heathcote was born on March 6, 1665, in his father's house in Chesterfield in Derbyshire, England. Caleb was the sixth ...

. He was the son of John Peter DeLancey, a Revolutionary War soldier, and his wife, Elizabeth Floyd. His sister married James Fenimore Cooper. DeLancey graduated from

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 1817 and later studied divinity with Bishop

John Henry Hobart John Henry Hobart (September 14, 1775 – September 12, 1830) was the third Episcopal bishop of New York (1816–1830). He vigorously promoted the extension of the Episcopal Church in upstate New York, as well as founded both the General Th ...

of New York. He served in several positions in New York before being ordained to the ministry in 1822. He married Frances Munro, daughter of

Peter Jay Munro Peter Jay Munro (January 10, 1767 – September 22, 1833) was an American lawyer and Federalist politician from New York. Early life Munro was born on January 10, 1767, in Rye in the Province of New York in what was then British America. He wa ...

, in 1820. They had five sons and three daughters. Their eldest son,

Edward Floyd DeLancey Edward Floyd DeLancey (October 23, 1821 – April 8, 1905) was an American lawyer, author, and historian. Early life "Ned" DeLancey was born on October 23, 1821, in Mamaroneck, New York. He was the eldest son of eight children born to Frances J ...

, was president of the

New York Genealogical and Biographical Society The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society (NYG&B or NYGBS) is a non-profit institution located at 36 West 44th Street in New York City. Founded in 1869, it is the second-oldest genealogical society in the United States, and the only state ...

Ministry

After his ordination, DeLancey took a position in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

as general assistant to William White (Bishop of Pennsylvania). He held various clerical offices in Philadelphia and, in 1826, was elected a Trustee of the

. Delancey was elected provost of the university in 1828, continuing in that office until 1834. The next three years showed a distinct improvement in the number of students and in other areas. In 1829, DeLancy was elected as a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. On November 2, 1838, DeLancey was elected first Bishop of the newly created

. He was the 34th bishop of the ECUSA, and was consecrated by bishops

Alexander Viets Griswold Alexander Viets Griswold (April 22, 1766 – February 15, 1843) was the 5th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States from 1836 until 1843. He was also the Bishop of the Eastern Diocese, which included all of New Englan ...

, Henry Ustick Onderdonk, and Benjamin Treadwell Onderdonk. DeLancey remained in that position for more than 25 years, residing in the town of

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

. In 1852, he attended the fifteenth anniversary of the

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societi ...

as one of the two representatives of the American House of Bishops, being the first American Bishop to be recognized officially as one of their own body by the Anglican Bishops. DeLancey was active in matters of church organization and legislation, and was instrumental in placing Hobart College and several other educational institutions on a firm basis. He was also involved in the establishment of

St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Geneva, New York) The original St. Peter's began as an Episcopal mission established in 1853. Bishop William H. DeLancey appointed Dr. James Rankine, who conducted services in a small wooden chapel in 1861. He served as first rector of the new St. Peter's church ...

, which was later dedicated as the DeLancey Memorial Church. He received the following honorary degrees: Doctor of Divinity from Yale in 1827, Doctor of Laws from

Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...

in 1849 and Doctor of Civil Laws from

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

, in 1852. He died in Geneva, New York on April 5, 1865, where his remains were interred in St. Peter's Episcopal Church.

Notes

References

External links

Documents by and about DeLancey
from Project Canterbury *
Yale Obituary Record
' * {{DEFAULTSORT:DeLancey, William Heathcote 1797 births 1865 deaths Chief Administrators of the University of Pennsylvania People from Mamaroneck, New York American people of Dutch descent Schuyler family Van Cortlandt family Yale College alumni Episcopal bishops of Western New York De Lancey family