George Grimston Cookman (October 21, 1800 – March 12, 1841) was a Methodist clergyman who served as

Chaplain of the Senate The chaplain of the United States Senate opens each session of the United States Senate with a prayer, and provides and coordinates religious programs and pastoral care support for senators, their staffs, and their families. The chaplain is appoi ...

. George Grimston Cookman was born in

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, England, on October 21, 1800, to George and Mary Cookman. He joined a Methodist society in 1820 and in 1821 he visited the United States for the first time, on business for his father. Later, upon the advice of minister friends, he determined to go to the United States to minister. He boarded the ''Orient'' on March 28, 1825, landing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, May 16, 1825. During his months at sea he read Bishop Watson's Apologies, Mason on Self-Knowledge, Jenyn's Views of the Internal Evidences of Christianity, Lord Lyttleton's Arguments for Christianity, Baxter's Gildas Salvianus and Saint's Rest, and

Butler's Analogy The Analogy of Religion, Natural and Revealed, to the Constitution and Course of Nature is an apologetic work of an English Anglican theologian and philosopher Joseph Butler (1736). The book aims to show a real correspondence, or analogy, betw ...

, while proselytizing to the seamen on board.

Ministry

His first year in the United States, he served St. George’s Church in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. In 1826 he was appointed to the Kensington and St. John churches in Philadelphia. At this point in his life, he hoped to go as a missionary to Africa, but this did not happen. Following his marriage in the spring of 1827, he was appointed to the

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster ( ) is a city in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 58,039 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, eighth-most populous ci ...

, circuit (comprising Lancaster, Columbia and Reading), the Cookmans lived in

Columbia, Pennsylvania Columbia, formerly Wright's Ferry, is a borough (town) in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 10,222. It is southeast of Harrisburg, on the east (left) bank of the Susquehanna River, ...

, along the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

, during this time. In 1828 he was stationed at

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Talbot County, Maryland Talbot County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,526. Its county seat is Easton. The county was named for Lady Grace Talbot, the wife of Sir Robert Talbot, an Anglo- Irish statesma ...

, where a long-held dream of preaching to the black population was first realized. His ministry and advocacy of emancipation garnered the praises of

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 14, 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He was the most impor ...

. His next appointments were to St. George’s in Philadelphia, for two years and then to

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

for a year. Cookman was then transferred to the

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

conference where he served all of the congregations in that city except Fells Point. Then he was called to

Carlisle, Pennsylvania Carlisle is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2020 United States census ...

, just as the Methodists were revitalizing

Dickinson College Dickinson College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1773 as Carlisle Grammar School, Dickinson was chartered on September 9, 1783, ...

. In 1838 he was sent to Wesley Chapel in Washington, D.C. His preaching there led to his being proposed as

(1839). While serving there, he was able to bring about a renewed commitment to Christian faith in future President

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. A northern Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who believed that the Abolitionism in the United States, abolitio ...

. In 1840 he took charge of the

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...

, church. Rev. Cookman was lost at sea when the steamship SS ''President'' (then the largest passenger ship afloat) departed on her third and final westward crossing on March 11, 1841, to England, never to be heard from again. The liner was last seen from the Packet Ship ‘’Orpheus’’ in a terrific gale on March 12; all 136 of the crew and passengers perished.The life of the Rev. Alfred Cookman: with Some Account of his Father, the Rev. George Grimston Cookman, by Henry Bascom Ridgaway

Personal life

On April 2, 1827, Cookman, who had returned to England, married Mary Barton at

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

, Yorkshire; their six children included sons Alfred, George, and John Emory.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cookman, George Grimston 1801 births 1840s missing person cases 1841 deaths 19th-century American clergy 19th-century Methodists American Methodist clergy Chaplains of the United States Senate English emigrants to the United States Clergy from Kingston upon Hull People lost at sea

Ministry

See also

Personal life

References