Samuel Cooper Thacher (December 14, 1785 – January 2, 1818) was an American clergyman and librarian. Thacher, who was born in Boston, on December 14, 1785, was sprung from a long line of preachers. His father

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

was the pastor of the

Brattle Street Church The Brattle Street Church (1698–1876) was a Congregational (1698 – c. 1805) and Unitarian (c. 1805–1876) church on Brattle Street in Boston, Massachusetts. History In January 1698, "Thomas Brattle conveyed the land on which the meet ...

in Boston, and his grandfathers were both ministers, including Peter Thacher, who in the beginning of the seventeenth century was a clergyman at

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

, England. It was not strange, that immediately after his graduation from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher ...

at the head of the class of 1804, he should have "all his hopes and wishes directed" to preparing himself for the ministry. He studied theology in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

under Dr. Channing and then spent two years in Europe. Upon his return to the United States, he was in 1808 elected Harvard College librarian. This office he held for the term of three years. At the inauguration of Harvard President

John Thornton Kirkland John Thornton Kirkland (August 17, 1770 – April 26, 1840) was an American Congregational clergyman who served as President of Harvard University from 1810 to 1828. As an undergraduate, he was a member of the Hasty Pudding. He is remembered chi ...

on November 14, 1810, Thacher was appointed to deliver the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

congratulatory address, a performance for which he received high praise. Not long after this event, Thacher was called to fill the pulpit of the New South Church in Boston, left vacant by Kirkland. His

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...

took place May 15, 1811. He began his pastorate with enthusiasm and success, but before many years his health failed, and the remainder of his life was a brave but unavailing struggle against

consumption Consumption may refer to: *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically * Consumption (ecology), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of newly produced goods for curre ...

. In August 1816, he sailed for England, hoping to benefit by the change. The first winter he passed at the dreary

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is ...

, and the next fall he went to Moulins, France. Neither of these places helped him much, and at the latter he died, on January 2, 1818. There he was buried and over his grave is a monument bearing a Latin inscription by his friend and classmate

Andrews Norton Andrews Norton (December 31, 1786 – September 18, 1853) was an American preacher and theologian. Along with William Ellery Channing, he was the leader of mainstream Unitarianism of the early and middle 19th century, and was known as the "Unitari ...

(Librarian, 1813–1821). Thacher was elected a Fellow of the

Harvard Corporation The President and Fellows of Harvard College (also called the Harvard Corporation or just the Corporation) is the smaller and more powerful of Harvard University's two governing boards, and is now the oldest corporation in America. Together with ...

on February 19, 1816, but was present at only a few meetings before his departure for Europe. He was also a member of the American Academy. After his death his library, consisting of 676 lots, was sold at auction. By vote of the Harvard Corporation, the president was authorized to expend $50 at the sale on books for the college Library. Thacher wrote a number of articles for the Monthly Anthology, and published one sermon, preached at the dedication of the new church in 1814. His sermon on the Unity of God, in which he gives a clear exposition of the

Unitarian Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present ...

doctrine, was printed in

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

in 1816 without his knowledge, and reprinted in Boston and also in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

the next year. In 1824, a volume of his sermons was issued, with a memoir by his successor at the New South church, the Rev.

F. W. P. Greenwood __NOTOC__ Francis William Pitt Greenwood (February 5, 1797 - August 2, 1843) was a Unitarian minister of King's Chapel in Boston, Massachusetts. Born in Boston, Greenwood graduated from Harvard College in 1814, and after studying theology under H ...

References

Further reading