Chandler Winfield Sterling (January 28, 1911 – March 3, 1984) was a bishop of

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

The Episcopal Church 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 of ...

Biography

Sterling was born on January 28, 1911, in

Dixon, Illinois Dixon is a city and the county seat of Lee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,733 as of the 2010 census, down from 15,941 in 2000. The city is named after founder John Dixon, who operated a rope ferry service across the Ro ...

, the Son of Robert Winfield Sterling and Mary Eleanor Chandler. He attended public schools in Dixon and

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chart ...

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, Downtown Chicago, ...

. He graduated from

Seabury-Western Theological Seminary Seabury-Western Theological Seminary (SWTS) was a seminary of the Episcopal Church, located in Evanston, Illinois. It ceased operations as a residential seminary granting the Master of Divinity degree in May 2010, and in January 2012 it moved f ...

in June 1938 and was ordained deacon that same month. He was ordained priest in December of the same year. On June 17, 1935, he married Catherine L. Ricker with whom he had 8 children.

Priesthood

His first appointment was as curate at St Augustine's Church in

Wilmette, Illinois Wilmette is a village in New Trier Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Bordering Lake Michigan and Evanston, Illinois, it is located north of Chicago's downtown district. Wilmette had a population of 27,087 at the 2010 census. The ...

, and Grace Church in

Oak Park, Illinois Oak Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, adjacent to Chicago. It is the 29th-most populous municipality in Illinois with a population of 54,583 as of the 2020 U.S. Census estimate. Oak Park was first settled in 1835 and later incorporated i ...

. In 1941 he became rector of St Andrew's Church in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

and served as locum at Grace Church in

Freeport, Illinois Freeport is the county seat and largest city of Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 23,973 at the 2020 census, and the mayor of Freeport is Jodi Miller, elected in 2017. Freeport is known for hosting the second Linco ...

, from 1943 till 1944. In 1944 he became rector of Our Savior's Church in

Elmhurst, Illinois Elmhurst is a city mostly in DuPage County and overlapping into Cook County in the U.S. state of Illinois, and a western suburb of Chicago. As of 2021, the city has an estimated population of 47,260. History Members of the Potawatomi Nativ ...

, a post he held until 1950 when he became rector of Grace Church in

Chadron, Nebraska Chadron ( ) is a city and the county seat of Dawes County, in the state of Nebraska in the Great Plains region of the United States. The population was 5,851 at the 2010 census. This city is the location of Chadron State College. Chadron also ...

, and was subsequently in charge of the mission in northwest Nebraska. He also served as chairman of the youth commission in the Diocese of Chicago and chairman of the Department for religious education in the Diocese of Nebraska.

Bishop

Stirling was elected Coadjutor Bishop of Montana in May 1956. He was consecrated on October 30, 1956, in St Peter's Pro-Cathedral by Henry Hean Daniels, Bishop of Montana. His co-consecrators were Howard R. Brinker of Nebraska and Joseph Minnis of Colorado. He succeeded as diocesan in 1957, and served until 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sterling, Chandler 1911 births 1984 deaths People from Dixon, Illinois Northwestern University alumni Seabury-Western Theological Seminary alumni 20th-century American Episcopalians Episcopal bishops of Montana 20th-century American clergy