Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/448

 PROSSER

PROVOOST

as the Industrial Young Men's Cliristian associa- tion, with all the convenitMices of a club house, amusement liall and educational institution, ded- icating it to the moral and educational upbuild- ing of the men emplo.ved in the marble works.

PROSSER, Charles Smith, educator and geologist, was born in Columbus, N.Y., March 24. 1!SG0; son of Smith and Emeline Amelia (Tut- tle) Prosser; grandson of William and Mary (Herrick) Prosser. and of James and Rebecca (Crandall) Tuttle. and a descendant of William and Elizabeth Tuttle of St. Albans, England, who came to America in the ship Planter and landed at Boston about July 1, 1635. He was graduated from Cornell university, B.S., 1883, M.S., 1886; was a fellow in natural history at Cornell, 1884- 85; and instructor in paleontology there, 1885- 88. and assistant paleontologist on the U.S. geo- logical survey, 1888-92. He was married, Aug. 28, 1893, to Mary Frances, daughter of Thomas and Mary Frances Wilson of Albany, N.Y. He was professor of natural history at Washburn college, Topeka, Kan., 1892-94; professor of geology and paleontology at Union college, Schenectady, N.Y., 1894-99; was elected associate professor of historical geology in Ohio State uni- versity in 1899, and professor of geology in 1901. He wasassistant geologist on the U.S. Geological survey, 1893-94 and from 1900; on the state geological survey of Kansas, 1896; New York, 189.5-99; Ohio from 1900, and chief of the Appal- achian division of the Maryland geological survey from 1897. He was made a fellow of the geolog- ical Society of America and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the Congres Geologique Interna- tional and other scientific societies. He pub- lished numerous papers and reports on the geol- ogy of Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska, Pennsyl- vania, Maryland, New York and Ohio, and is the author of: The Devonian System of Eastern Penns>jlrania and New York (1895); The Classifi- cation of the Upper Palceozoic Rocks of Central Katisas (1895); The Upper Permian and Louver Cretaceous of Kansas (1897); The Classification and DistributioJi of the Hamilton and Chemung Series of Central and Eastern New 1 orfc (pt. I., 1898; pt. II., 1900); besides contributions to scif^ntific periodicals.

PROVOOST, Samuel, first bishop of New York and 3d in succession in the American episcopate, was born in New York city, Feb. 26, 1742; son of Jolin and Eve (Rutgers) Provoost; grandson of Samuel and Maria (Spratt) Provoost, and of Har- manus and Catharine (Meyer) Rutgers; great- grandson of David and Catharine (Laurens) Pro- voost, and great -grandson of David Provoost (1608-1557) of Amsterdam, who came to New Netherlands, 1624; returned to Holland, 1626,

where in 1030 he married Margaretta, daughter of (jillis Ten Waert, and came to New Amster- dam in 1634. Samuel Provoost's parents were members of the Dutch Reformed church. He was graduated at Kings (Columbia) college, New York city, with its first class. A.B., 1758, A..M, 1761, and at St. Peter'scollege, Cambridge univer- sity, England, A.B., 1765. He was admitted to the diaconate at the Chapel Royal of St. James's Palace, Westminster, by the Bishop of London, Feb. 23, 1766, and advanced to the priest- liood at King's Chapel, Whitehall, by the Bishop of Whitehall, March 23, 1766. He was married at Cambridge, England, June 6, 1766, to Maria, daughter of Thomas Bonsfield of Lake Lands, near Cork, Ireland; returned to New York city, and in December, 1766, became an assistant to the Rev. Samuel Auchmuty, rector of Trinity parish, which embraced at the time St. George's and St. Paul's chapels. He revisited Ireland, 1769, and resigned from Trinity, May 21. 1771, re- tiring to a farm at East Camp, Columbia county, N.Y. He declined to serve as delegate to the Provincial congress and as chaplain of the con- stitutional convention which met in Kingston, N.Y., in 1777, and the rectorship of various par- ishes. He lived in retirement until 1784 when he accepted the rectorship of Trinity parish, and returned to New York city, where he was ap- pointed chaplain of the Continental congress in 1785. He was elected bishop of the newly erected diocese of New York, June 13, 1786, and with the Rev. William White (q.v.) went to England for consecration. They were consecrated at Lam- beth Palace, London, England, Feb. 4, 1787, by Archbishop John Moore of Canterburj', Arch- bishop Markham of York, Bishop Moss of Bath and Wells and Bishop Hinchcliffe of Peterbor- ough. Bishop Provoost's wife died in 1799. He retained the rectorship of Trinity jmrish until Dec. 22, 1800, when he resigned, and on Sept. 7, 1801, he resigned the bishopric of New York. He •was a regent of the University of the State of New York, 1784-87; trustee of Columbia college, 1784-1801, and chairman of the board of trustees, 1795-1801. He received the degree S.T.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1786, and was the first chaplain of the U.S. senate in 1789. He was learned in the ancient and modern lan- guages; was a student of botany and an accom- plished master of belles-lettres, but published nothing beyond his sermons. He took part in the consecration of Bishops Claggett, Smith, Bass, Jarvis, Hobart and Griswold. Bishop Provoost was a personal friend of Washington, Adams, Jay, Hamilton and others, a panel on the bronze doors of Trinity church showing the Bishop re- ceiving Washington at the entrance of St. Paul's chapel immediately after his inauguration.