Augustus Theodore Norton (March 28, 1808 – April 29, 1884) was an American minister and author. Norton, only son of Theodore and Mary (Judd) Norton, was born in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, Conn., March 28, 1808. He 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 1832. After graduation, he was principal for two years of the academy in Catskill, N. Y., at the same time reading theology with the Rev. Thomas M. Smith. On April 1, 1835, he was ordained pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Windham, Greene County, N Y ; but his strong preference of the West as a field of labor led him to resign this pastorate after a few months, and remove to Illinois. He arrived at

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, in that State, in October 1835, and after short engagements in that town, in Griggsville, in

Pittsfield Pittsfield is the most populous city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsf ...

, and in

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, he was called in February 1839, to the pastorate of the First Presbyterian Church in

Alton Alton may refer to: People *Alton (given name) * Alton (surname) Places Australia * Alton National Park, Queensland * Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne Canada * Alton, Ontario * Alton, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Alton, New Zeala ...

, Illinois, and was installed there on May 9. This position he held for more than 19 years, the church flourishing greatly under his leadership. In May 1845, he originated, and for 23 years edited and published the '' Presbytery Reporter'', a monthly magazine. In September 1859, he was appointed District Secretary of Church Extension and Home Missions of the Presbyterian Church, for the West, and for a few months after this he resided in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

; but in the spring of 1881 he returned to Alton, where he continued until his death. After the union of the Old and New School Assemblies in 1870, the field of his secretaryship was limited to the Synod of Illinois South. He died, after a lingering illness, in Alton, April 29, 1884, at the age of 76. His usefulness was especially marked in planting and nourishing churches in Central and Southern Illinois. The degree of

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...

was conferred on him by

Wabash College Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832, by a group of Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, the institution was originally named "The Wabash Teachers Seminary an ...

, Indiana, in 1868. He published in 1879 a ''History of the Presbyterian Church in Illinois'' (737 pp. 8vo). He married, November 12, 1834, Eliza, daughter of Deacon Noah Rogers, of Cornwall, who survived him with two sons and two daughters.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norton, augustus theodore 1808 births 1884 deaths Yale College alumni People from Cornwall, Connecticut American Presbyterian ministers People from Alton, Illinois Writers from Connecticut Religious leaders from Connecticut Religious leaders from Illinois 19th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American male writers American religious writers Wabash College alumni 19th-century American clergy