Born: 1729 Died: 1796
Age:
Occupation: Anglican minister
Residence:

Samuel Seabury (1729–1796) was one of the most prominent Loyalist clergymen of the American Revolution and later became the first bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. Born in Groton, Connecticut, and educated at Yale and in Edinburgh, he served parishes across New Jersey and New York under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. Fiercely loyal to the Crown, Seabury opposed revolutionary measures and published pamphlets denouncing the Continental Congress. His open royalism led to imprisonment in 1775 and the temporary closure of his church, declaring he could not pray publicly until he could again pray for King George III. During the war, he acted as chaplain to British forces in New York, where his steadfast loyalty earned him an Oxford doctorate and the continued support of the SPG.

After the Revolution, Seabury played a decisive role in reorganizing Anglicanism in America. In 1783, Connecticut clergy elected him their bishop, but English consecration was impossible because he could not swear allegiance to the crown. Instead, Seabury turned to the Scottish nonjuring bishops, who consecrated him in Aberdeen in November 1784. His consecration—America’s first—linked the new Episcopal Church with the Scottish tradition, particularly its communion liturgy. Returning home in 1785, he worked to unite the English and Scottish branches, and by 1790 helped establish the constitution and prayer book of the Protestant Episcopal Church, serving as its first presiding bishop. Though he lived modestly, Seabury’s political steadfastness and ecclesiastical diplomacy helped shape the post-Revolutionary Anglican church in America.

Sources

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

Documents signed by this Loyalist:
D-STAC-001 – Declaration of Dependence
D-STAC-006 – White Plains Subscription