The Right Reverend William Croswell Doane (born Boston March 2, 1832[1] - died New York City May 17, 1913[1][2]) was the 1st Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany in the United States. He was bishop from 1869 until his death in 1913. As a student at Burlington College, New Jersey (where his family had moved in 1833), he was a founding member of a chapter of the college society St. Anthony Hall.[3][4] He served about 60 years in ordained ministry, a huge span for those times. Doane is probably best known today for his Anglican hymn, Ancient of Days.[5]
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Doane was born in Boston, and named for his father's best friend, the Rev. William Croswell.[1] When he was born, his father, the Rev. George Doane, was Rector of Trinity Church, Boston, a prominent church.[1] Within a year, his father was elected Bishop of New Jersey.[1] While he was raised in Burlington, New Jersey, and attended St. Mary's School there, the place had little effect on him.[1] In addition to also becoming an Episcopal priest like his father, he was also attached to the Oxford Movement like the elder Doane.[1] He was ordained a Deacon on March 6, 1853, by his father at his home parish.[1] Shortly thereafter, he married the former Sarah Katharine Condit; they had two children.[1] He was ordained a priest in 1856 in the same church, and served at St. Barnabas Free Church in Burlington until 1860.[1]
In 1863, he accepted a call to St. John's Church, Hartford, Connecticut, and he served there during the American Civil War.[1] While there, parishioner Mark Twain pulled a joke on Doane, claiming "I have ... a book at home containing every word" of Doane's sermon that Sunday, then sent him an unabridged dictionary.[6]
He moved to Albany, New York in 1867 to serve "the venerable parish of St. Peter's, Albany."[1]
At the General Convention of 1868, in New York City, a new diocese of Albany was created, and Doane was elected the first bishop at the organizational convention of the diocese in St. Peter's Church.[1] His election had "strong opposition," because he was a "young rector," but also because "the evangelical element ... looked upon Mr. Doane as a high churchman, [with] his ritualistic practices...."[1]
He was consecrated as a bishop in the Church of God in his own parish church, St. Peter's, on the Feast of the Purification, February 2, 1869.—George Lynde Richardson [1]
His consecrators were:
William Croswell Doane was the 92nd bishop consecrated in the Episcopal Church.
Doane had a large diocese, and spent many years in visitation, establishing churches, and confirming persons.[1]
Doane's biggest project, for many years, was the building of the Cathedral of All Saints, his major legacy.[1] He got the land donated by the wealthy Erastus Corning, and set about building the edifice starting with its incorporation in 1873, and the laying of its cornerstone, on June 3, 1884, "with impressive ceremony."[1] The Cathedral of All Saints was dedicated in 1888.[7] Until that time, smaller Episcopal churches served as seats of the bishop, and the "cathedral idea" -- the concept that a bishops' main church is more than merely a parish church, but the "Mother church" -- had not yet taken hold in the United States.[1][8] Much of the building was paid for a gift by his unlikely friend, J. Pierpont Morgan.[1]
He died in New York City while travelling in 1913, at the then ripe old age of 81.[1] He was replaced by his Coadjutor, Richard Henry Nelson.[1]
| Episcopal Church (USA) titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by |
1st Bishop of Albany 1869 – 1913 |
Succeeded by Richard H. Nelson |