All Biographies (A to Z)

Graham, Augustus

Augustus Graham (baptized April 15, 1776-November 27, 1851) was a manufacturer, social activist and philanthropist. Because of his name change and the mystery surrounding him,

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Greeley, Dana McLean

Dana McLean Greeley (July 5, 1908-June 13, 1986), a Unitarian minister, peace activist, and civil rights leader, was the last president of the American Unitarian

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Greeley, Horace

Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811-November 29, 1872), Universalist journalist, reformer, and politician, is best known as the longtime, innovative publisher and editor of the New

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Green, Robert

Robert Edward Green (September 30, 1934-January 15, 2003) was a religious humanist and Unitarian Universalist minister who served churches in Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont, Michigan, and,

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Grieg, Edvard and Nina

Edvard Grieg (June 15, 1843-September 4, 1907), considered Norway’s greatest composer, was the first to create an internationally celebrated body of musical works inspired by

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Hall, Franklin Oliver

Frank Oliver Hall (March 19, 1860-October 18, 1941) was an inspiring preacher and social gospeler who founded the Universalist Commission on Social Service. He served

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Harris, Clarence J.

Clarence J. Harris (March 16, 1873-November 27, 1941) was a minister who served both Universalist and Unitarian congregations. During the early years of the motion

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Harrison, Alice Mildred

Alice Mildred Harrison (July 27, 1906-June 13, 1989), a religious educator, was a pioneering leader and organizer of youth programming and activities for the Universalist

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Charles Hartshorne

Hartshorne, Charles

Charles Hartshorne (pronounced Harts-horne—as in “deer’s horn”) (June 5, 1897-October 9, 2000) was the 20th century’s leading exponent of process theism. In his long career

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Haydon, Eustace A

A. Eustace Haydon (1880-1975), a pioneer in the study of world religions, was a leader of the Humanist movement. Born in Canada, he was ordained

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Hedge, Frederic Henry

Frederic Henry Hedge (December 12, 1805-August 21, 1890) was a Unitarian minister, an early Transcendentalist leader, a historical theologian, a German scholar and translator, and

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Herford, Brooke

Brooke Herford (February 21, 1830-December 21, 1903) was a Unitarian minister, noted preacher, and author, who served several important churches in Great Britain and America.

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Hoar Family

Samuel Hoar (1778-November 2, 1856), a native of Lincoln, Massachusetts, and Sarah Sherman (1785-1862) of New Haven, Connecticut married in the fall of 1813 and

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Holden, Edith

Edith Blackwell Holden (September 26, 1871-April 6, 1920) was a British artist and art teacher, known in her time as an illustrator of children’s books.

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Holmes, John

John Holmes (January 6, 1904-June 22, 1962), a poet and critic, was a teacher of literature and modern poetry at Tufts University for 28 years.

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Holmes, John Haynes

John Haynes Holmes (November 29, 1879-April 3, 1964), a Unitarian minister and social activist, was prominent the Unitarian movement throughout much of the first half

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Howe, Julia Ward

Julia Ward Howe (May 27, 1819-October 17, 1910), little known today except as author of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” was famous in her

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Huidekoper, Harm Jan

Harm Jan Huidekoper (April 3, 1776–May 22, 1854) was a businessman, philanthropist, essayist and lay theologian, a vice president of the American Unitarian Association, and

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Jack, Homer Alexander

Homer Alexander Jack (May 19, 1916-August 5, 1993) was a Unitarian Universalist minister and early activist for peace, disarmament, racial equality and social justice. An

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Jones, Jenkin Lloyd

Jenkin Lloyd Jones (November 14, 1843-September 12, 1918), a pioneering Unitarian minister, missionary, educator, and journalist, expanded the ranks of midwestern Unitarians and built up

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Jordan, David Starr

David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851-September 19, 1931), an ichthyologist and an early teacher of evolutionary science, was president of Indiana University and Stanford University

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Jordan, Joseph

Joseph Jordan (1842-1901), the first African American to be ordained as a minister by the Universalist denomination, founded the First Universalist Church of Norfolk, Virginia

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Joy, Charles Rhind

Charles Rhind Joy (December 5, 1885- September 26, 1978) was a Unitarian minister, American Unitarian Association official, and an international humanitarian worker affiliated with the

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Kepley, Ada Harriet Miser

Ada Harriet Miser Kepley (February 11, 1847-June 13, 1925), an energetic women’s suffragist, temperance advocate, and Unitarian minister, was the first American woman to graduate

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Kirkpatrick, James

James Kirkpatrick (c.1676-1743), an Irish Presbyterian minister, played a leading role in the development of non-subscription and the creation of the Presbytery of Antrim as

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Kiszka, Jan

Jan (John) Kiszka (c.1552-1592) was a politician, magnate, patron and benefactor of Arianism in the 16th-century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Jan was the eldest son of Stanislaw

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Kneeland, Abner

Born in Gardner, Massachusetts, Abner was the sixth of ten children of Timothy and Moriah Stone Kneeland. His formal education stopped after a year in

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Kuroda, Andrew Yoshinobu

Andrew Yoshinobu Kuroda (December 29, 1906-February 19, 1997), the first an* ordained Unitarian minister of Japanese ancestry in the United States, served the Japanese Unitarian

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Lathrop, John Howland

John Howland Lathrop (June 6, 1880-August 20, 1967) was a distinguished Unitarian minister, social activist and peace advocate. He said in 1936, “Human associations are

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Livesay, Dorothy

Dorothy Livesay (October 12, 1909-December 29, 1996) was one of the leading Canadian poets of the twentieth century. Her free verse poetry probes the mysteries

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Lyttle, Charles

Charles Harold Lyttle (July 16, 1884-May 2, 1980) was a Unitarian minister and professor of Church History at the Meadville/Lombard Theological School in Chicago for

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MacLean, Angus Hector

Angus Hector MacLean (May 9, 1892-November 11, 1969), Universalist minister, theological school professor and dean, played a major part in reshaping the philosophy and practice

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Mann, Horace

Horace Mann (May 4, 1796-August 2, 1859), was an educator and a statesman who greatly advanced the cause of universal, free, non-sectarian public schools. Mann

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Martineau, Harriet

Harriet Martineau (June 12, 1802-June 27, 1876), a pioneering British journalist and writer, grew up Unitarian and was for a time a Unitarian apologist. A

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Martineau, James

James Martineau (April 21, 1805-January 11, 1900) was a Unitarian minister and educator, and a widely influential theologian and philosopher. As lecturer and Principal at

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Mason, Leonard

Leonard Mason (February 7, 1912-December 26, 1995), a British Unitarian humanist minister, who served churches in England and in Montreal, Quebec, was one of the

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Mayer, Jean

Jean Mayer (February 19, 1920-January 1, 1993), a renowned French-American scientist, physiologist, nutritionist, educator, was the tenth president of Tufts University. Under his visionary leadership

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McCollester, Lee Sullivan

Lee Sullivan McCollester (June 5, 1859-December 26, 1943) was a Universalist minister, Professor of Religious Literature and Chaplain at Tufts College (now University), and the

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John Murray

Murray, John

John Murray (December 10, 1741-September 3, 1815), a preacher from the British Isles, became the most widely-known and respected voice of American Universalism during the

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Niemirycz, Jerzy

Jerzy (George) Niemirycz (1612-1659) was an ambitious Arian nobleman and statesman in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. During his later life the Commonwealth, which included the Ukraine,

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Nute, Ephraim

Ephraim Nute, Jr. (September 18, 1819-January 21, 1897), an outspoken and aggressive abolitionist, was the American Unitarian Association (AUA) missionary to the Kansas territory during

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Peabody, Ephraim

Ephraim Peabody (March 22, 1807-November 28, 1856), an early Unitarian missionary to the (then) western United States and later a prominent and beloved minister of

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Peacock, William Arthur

William Arthur Peacock (August 23, 1905-September 15, 1968) was a British Universalist and Unitarian minister, Labour Party politician, and a journalist in religion and politics.

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Pickering, David

David Pickering (May 28, 1788-January 6, 1859), a Universalist minister, founded the Providence Association, an organization which challenged the disciplinary authority of the New England

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Quincy, Josiah

Josiah Quincy (February 4, 1772-July 1, 1864) was a Congressman, judge of the Massachusetts municipal court, state representative, mayor of Boston and president of Harvard

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Ratcliff, John Moses

John Moses Ratcliff (June 6, 1892-February 22, 1953), a Universalist minister, was Professor of Education and Religious Education at Tufts College, Dean of Tufts School

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Reamon, Ellsworth C.

Ellsworth C. Reamon (July 6, 1895-November 9, 1983), an active Universalist and Unitarian Universalist parish minister for 55 years, held a number of important denominational

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Reeb, James Joseph

James Joseph Reeb (January 1, 1927-March 11, 1965) was a minister, social worker, and civil rights activist. His brutal murder by segregationists while participating in

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Reese, Curtis

Curtis Williford Reese (September 3, 1887-June 5, 1961) was an educator, administrator, social activist, journalist, and Unitarian minister. He was a founder and president of

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Relly, James

James Relly (c.1722-April 25, 1778) was, as a young British minister, one a sizable group of Methodist preachers, including George Whitefield and John Wesley, whose

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Rich, Caleb

Caleb Rich (August 12, 1750-October 18, 1821), one of the earliest New England Universalist preachers, was the first to proclaim that there would be no

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Ripley, Erza

Ezra Ripley (May 1, 1751-September 21, 1841) served as minister of the First Parish in Concord, Massachusetts for almost 63 years. Although not himself an

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Ripley, George

George Ripley (October 3, 1802-July 4, 1880), minister of the Purchase Street Church in Boston, 1826-41, was a central figure in the Transcendentalist movement of

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Ronalds, Elizabeth

Elizabeth (Betsey) Ronalds (April 2, 1788-May 5, 1854) was an English horticultural illustrator, best remembered for the lithographs in her father Hugh Ronalds‘ renowned book

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Ronalds, Francis

Sir Francis Ronalds (February 21, 1788-August 8, 1873) – inventor, engineer and scientist – is known for building the first working electric telegraph and, while

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Rush, Benjamin

Benjamin Rush (December 24, 1745-April 19, 1813), a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was the most celebrated American physician and the leading social reformer

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Sargent, John Turner

John Turner Sargent (July 12, 1807-March 26, 1877) served as a Unitarian minister-at” align=right>t-large in Boston for eight years. Deeply committed to the poor and

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Scott, Clinton Lee

Clinton Lee Scott (September 28, 1887-September 28, 1985), a Universalist minister, played a major role in the revitalization of the Universalist denomination during the 1930s,

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Seaburg, Carl

Carl Gerrard Seaburg (October 21, 1922-December 16, 1998) was a minister, scholar, writer, editor and long-time member of the staff of the Unitarian Universalist Association.

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Severance, Caroline

Carolina Seymour Severance (January 12, 1820-November 10, 1914), called Caroline, was for nearly seventy years an active social reformer, organizer, church woman and club woman

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Shrigley, James

James Shrigley (April 5, 1813-July 24, 1905) was a Universalist minister, a United States Army chaplain during the Civil War, a leader in the Pennsylvania

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Skinner, Dolphus

Dolphus Skinner (May 18, 1800-October 2, 1869), a Universalist minister and editor, served the Universalist church in Utica, New York for over 40 years. His

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Solly, Henry

Henry Solly (November 13, 1813-February 27, 1903), British Unitarian minister and social reformer, was one of the most remarkable social innovators of his time. He

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Soule, Caroline

Caroline Augusta White Soule (September 3, 1824-December 6, 1903), a novelist, poet, religious writer, editor, and minister, was one of the founders and the first

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Spear, Charles

Charles Spear (May 1, 1803-April 13, 1863) took up the idea of abolishing the death penalty at a time when the idea was widely regarded

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Spear, John Murray

John Murray Spear (September 16, 1804-October 5, 1887), made his career as a Universalist minister, abolitionist, activist against the death penalty, and advocate for women’s

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Spoerl, Dorothy

Dorothy Tilden Spoerl (March 29, 1906-December 2, 1999) was a leading Universalist and Unitarian Universalist religious educator and parish minister from the time of her

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Stevenson, Adlai Ewing

Adlai Ewing Stevenson (February 5, 1900-July 14, 1965), politician and diplomat, was twice the Democratic Party’s candidate for President of the United States. He brought

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Stowe, Emily

Emily Howard Jennings Stowe (May 1, 1831-April 30, 1903), a path-breaking Canadian woman physician and suffragist, led campaigns to provide women access to medical schools

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Streeter, Adams

Adams Streeter (December 31, 1735-September 2, 1786) was the first minister of the Universalist congregations in Oxford and Milford, Massachusetts, societies at the heart of

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Sunderland, Eliza

Eliza Jane Read Sunderland (April 19, 1839-March 3, 1910), the wife of a prominent Unitarian minister, was a church leader, innovative religious educator, prominent reformer,

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Sunderland, Jabez Thomas

Jabez Thomas Sunderland (February 11, 1842-August 13, 1936) was a Unitarian minister and reformer. Attempting to influence the direction of American Unitarian development, he unsuccessfully

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Taesler, Clemens

Clemens Taeslar (June 25, 1887 – February 23, 1969), a German, was a poet, Goethe scholar, popular lecturer, and minister who embraced a liberal theology.

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Taft, Alphonso

Alphonso Taft (November 5, 1810-May 21, 1891), one of Cincinnati’s most prominent citizens and among Ohio’s most highly regarded 19th-century attorneys and jurists, wrote an

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Thomas, Abel Charles

Abel Charles Thomas (July 11, 1807-September 27, 1880) was a Universalist evangelist, minister, journalist, and historian. Although he served the Universalist church in Philadelphia in

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Thoreau, Henry David

Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817-May 6, 1862) was a person of many talents and interests: surveyor, pencil-maker, naturalist, lecturer, schoolteacher, poet, anti-slavery activist, and

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Tolmin, Harry

Harry Toulmin (April 7, 1766-November 11, 1823), a Unitarian minister in Britain, emigrated across the Atlantic in search of religious freedom and tolerance. In America

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Tuckerman, Joseph

Joseph Tuckerman (January 18, 1778-April 20, 1840) was a Unitarian minister widely known in his time for his labor of love with Boston’s poor and

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