Byron Sunderland | |
|---|---|
 Between 1870 and 1880 | |
| Born | (1819-11-22)November 22, 1819 Shoreham, Vermont, U.S. |
| Died | June 30, 1901(1901-06-30) (aged 81) Catskill, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Presbyterian minister |
Byron Sunderland (November 22, 1819 – June 30, 1901) was an American Presbyterian minister, author, andChaplain of the United States Senate during theAmerican Civil War.
Sunderland was born on November 22, 1819, to Asa and Olive (Wolcott) Sunderland in the town ofShoreham, Vermont. Both of his grandfathers served in theAmerican Revolutionary War. After spending his childhood in Shoreham, he attendedMiddlebury College a few miles away and graduated from there in 1838, later receiving a D.D. in 1855 from the same school. He taught for some time before attending theUnion Theological Seminary in the City of New York.
In 1843, Sunderland became pastor of the Presbyterian Church atBatavia, New York. By 1851 he had become pastor-elect of the Park Presbyterian Church inSyracuse, New York before being called to the First Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C.In 1853, Sunderland began a distinguished 45-year tenure as senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in Washington. In 1857, he began to preach in favor of the abolition of slavery, a courageous act in a city that was essentially a conservative Southern town. A further courageous act was allowingFrederick Douglass to speak from the pulpit in 1866.
Sunderland was appointed to the office ofChaplain of the Senate in 1861, serving for three years. He resigned in 1864 to accept the post of Pastor of the American Chapel inParis,France. He served in that position from September 1864 until October 1865, when he returned to Washington to resume his duties as Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church. Following his return to Washington, he also served several terms as chaplain of the US House of Representatives and the US Senate.[1] He served as the president ofHoward University from 1867 to 1869, and on the first board of directors ofGallaudet College in Washington. He retired from his pastorate of the First Presbyterian Church in Washington in 1898, becoming pastoremeritus for life.
WhenGrover Cleveland was elected president, he began attending Sunderland's church.
On June 2, 1886, in the Blue Room of theWhite House Sunderland performed the marriage service for thewedding of PresidentGrover Cleveland andFrances Cornelia Folsom, the daughter of Cleveland's former law partner. It was the only time that a president has been married in theWhite House.
Sunderland served on the executive committee of theAmerican Colonization Society.
Sunderland died of a cerebral embolism at the home of his daughter and son-in-law, Rosalie and Orrin Day, inCatskill, New York on June 30, 1901, his wife, Mary Elizabeth Tomlinson Sunderland, having predeceased him in 1896. He left his estate to the only one of his three children to survive him, Rosalie Day, with instructions to "transmit some suitable token to all relatives and friends."
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
| Religious titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | 41st US Senate Chaplain July 10, 1861 – May 11, 1864 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | 45th US Senate Chaplain December 8, 1873 – March 24, 1879 | Succeeded by |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by | President ofHoward University 1867–1869 | Succeeded by |
