Alexander Viets Griswold
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Alexander Viets Griswold (April 22, 1766 – February 15, 1843) was the 5th Presiding Bishop of the
Episcopal Church in the United States The Episcopal Church (TEC), also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (PECUSA), is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion, based in the United States. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is ...
from 1836 until 1843. He was also the Bishop of the Eastern Diocese, which included all of
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
with the exception of the
Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut The Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut (also known as The Episcopal Church in Connecticut) is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing the entire state of Connecticut. It is one of the nine original dioceses ...
. Griswold was an
evangelical Episcopalian Evangelical Anglicanism or Evangelical Episcopalianism is a tradition or church party within Anglicanism that shares affinity with broader evangelicalism. Evangelical Anglicans share with other evangelicals the attributes of "conversionism, a ...
.


Biography

Born in
Simsbury, Connecticut Simsbury is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, incorporated as Connecticut's 21st town in May 1670. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region. The population was 24,517 in the 2020 census. History Early history At ...
, Alexander Viets Griswold was the son of Elisha Griswold and Eunice Viets. Griswold died in
Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
. He married Elizabeth Mitchelson on 6 May 1785 or 1786 at Scotland (now Bloomfield), Connecticut. They had 12 children. His sister was the painter
Eunice Pinney Eunice Griswold Holcombe Pinney (February 9, 1770 – 1849) was an American folk artist active in the towns of Windsor, Connecticut, Windsor and Simsbury, Connecticut. According to art historian Jean Lipman, a specialist in American folk painting ...
. Griswold received the degree of
D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (i.e., Christian theology and ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the English-speaking world than elsewhere. In the United Kin ...
from
Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...
in 1810, from
Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...
in 1811, and from
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
in 1812. Griswold was ordained deacon on June 7, 1795, and priest on October 1, 1795. Griswold served three small churches in Litchfield County and also taught school. Griswold was chosen rector of St. Michael's Church,
Bristol, Rhode Island Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States, as well as the county seat. The population of Bristol was 22,493 at the 2020 census. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. Major industries include boat buil ...
, in 1804. He was elected bishop and consecrated on May 29, 1811. As the eldest serving bishop, he also served as the Episcopal Church's fifth Presiding Bishop from July 17, 1836, until his death. Griswold also served as
Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...
of Brown University from 1815 to 1828. He was a cousin of both
Frank Griswold Frank Tracy Griswold III (September 18, 1937 – March 5, 2023) was an American clergyman who served as the 25th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church. Early life and education Griswold was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, and educated at ...
and Sheldon M. Griswold, both Episcopal bishops. When he died in 1843, he was interred in Trinity Church on Summer Street in Boston. In 1876, the bodies of Griswold and his family were removed to the churchyard outside St. Paul's Church, in
Dedham, Massachusetts Dedham ( ) is a New England town, town in, and the county seat of, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Located on Boston's southwestern border, the population was 25,364 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. First settled by E ...
.


Works

Griswold wrote the hymn ''Holy Father, great Creator''. He also published ''Discourses on the Most Important Doctrines and Duties of the Christian Religion'' (1830); ''The Reformation and the Apostolic Office'' (1843); and ''Remarks on Social Prayer Meetings'' (1858). His memoirs were published by Dr. J. S. Stone. Some of his papers and a lock of his hair are stored in the University Library,
University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of Rhode Island. The univer ...
.


Honors

The former Griswold College in
Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...
, was named in honor of Griswold.


See also

*
List of presiding bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America This is a list of the Presiding Bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States. Initially the position of Presiding Bishop rotated geographically. After 1795 the Presiding Bishop was the senior bishop in order of consecration. Starting in 1 ...
*
List of Episcopal bishops of the United States The following is a list of bishops who currently lead dioceses of the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church in the United States and its territories. Also included in the list are suffragan bishops, provisional bishops, coadjutor b ...
* Historical list of the Episcopal bishops of the United States


References


Further reading

* * * *


External links


Documents by Alexander Viets Griswold
from Project Canterbury
Memoior of the Life of Alexander Viets Griswold at Internet Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Griswold, Alexander Viets 1766 births 1843 deaths Harvard University alumni Brown University alumni Princeton University alumni Presiding Bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America Episcopal bishops of Massachusetts 19th-century Anglican bishops in the United States Chancellors of Brown University Evangelical Anglican bishops Burials at Old Village Cemetery People from Simsbury, Connecticut Episcopal bishops of Rhode Island 18th-century Anglican theologians 19th-century Anglican theologians Burials in Dedham, Massachusetts