Rev. Samuel Weed Barnum (June 4, 1820 – November 18, 1891) was an American minister and author. Barnum, the only son of Horace and Cynthia (Weed) Barnum, was born in North Salem,

Westchester County, New York Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...

, on June 4, 1820, and removed to

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2 ...

, in 1835. Barnum 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 1841. He studied in the

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

from 1841 to 1844, but during his theological course, and afterwards, he suffered much from ill-health. From March, 1845, to August, 1847, he was the principal assistant of Professor Goodrich in the revision of ''

Webster's Dictionary ''Webster's Dictionary'' is any of the English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by American lexicographer Noah Webster (1758–1843), as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's n ...

''. From December, 1848, to April, 1850, he preached to the First Congregational Church in

Granby, Connecticut Granby is a town in far northern Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,903 at the 2020 census. The town center is defined as a census-designated place known as Salmon Brook. Other areas in town include North Granby a ...

. In 1851-2 he preached for fourteen months at

Feeding Hills Feeding Hills is a section of the city of Agawam with its own ZIP Code (01030) and post office. Line Street in Agawam is generally accepted by residents as being the unofficial border. In the early to mid-19th century, a ditch was dug here to se ...

, then a parish of West Springfield, now of

Agawam, Massachusetts Agawam is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 28,692 at the 2020 census. Agawam sits on the western side of the Connecticut River, directly across from Springfield, Massachusetts. It is considered part of t ...

. He was ordained pastor of the Congregational Church in

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom *Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constituenc ...

, Mass., on January 25, 1853, and remained there for two years. From January 1, 1856, to May 14, 1862, he was pastor of the church in Phillipston, Mass. He remained for one year longer in Phillipston, and then resided for two years in Stamford. In May, 1865, he removed to

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...

, and during his residence here, besides preaching as health and opportunity permitted, he prepared for the press a ''Comprehensive Dictionary of the Bible'' (1868), mainly abridged from Dr. William Smith; ''Romanism as it is'' (1871); and a ''Vocabulary of English Rhymes'' (1876). His health, never robust, was after this date more precarious; but he was able to take charge, in part, of the department of pronunciation in the new ''Webster's International Dictionary'' (1890), and was preparing an elaborate Fifty-years' Record of his Yale class, when his death occurred, very suddenly, from heart-disease, in New Haven, on November 18, 1891, in his 72nd year. He married, on April 16, 1849, Charlotte Betts, of Stamford, who survived him with their children, two sons and two daughters ; the sons are graduates of Yale College, in 1875 and 1879, respectively, one daughter was mathematician

Charlotte Barnum Charlotte Cynthia Barnum (May 17, 1860 – March 27, 1934), mathematician and social activist, was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest acade ...

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:barnum, samuel weed 1820 births 1891 deaths People from North Salem, New York Yale Divinity School alumni American lexicographers American Congregationalist ministers American male non-fiction writers American religious writers Yale College alumni 19th-century American clergy 19th-century lexicographers