Elected 1829, Day 1; served to 1853

The Rev. William Edward Wyatt clearly valued the institutional role of the President. Wyatt was active in the Church in Maryland, and attended every General Convention from 1817 until his death.  He was elected President of the House of Deputies in 1829 and re-elected every year thereafter until finally he refused re-election in 1853.   He was born in Manchester, Nova Scotia, on July 9th, 1789, but his family moved to New York when he was still an infant. He attended Columbia College in the same class as Jackson Kemper and both Bishops Onderdonk, graduating with a B.A. in 1809, and began studying to take orders under the tutelage of Bishop Hobart.  He was ordained to the diaconate in 1810 and began his ministry the following year in Newtown, Long Island, assisting periodically at Trinity Church in New York City.  He was ordained to the priesthood in 1813, and the following year he removed to St. Paul's, Baltimore as associate rector.  In 1827, he became the sole rector of St. Paul's, and he served in this position until his death in 1864.  Wyatt was nominated to the episcopacy several times but never became a bishop; however, he was very influential voice in the "High Church" school of the Diocese of Maryland.  He was well-loved and deeply mourned when he died after 51 years of service to the Episcopal Church.

READ
Wyatt's Address, 1844. William Wyatt's address to General Convention.