Pennington-Jarvis Manuscript Collection

Samuel Farmar Jarvis was born on January 20, 1786, the son of the Rt. Rev. Abraham Jarvis, second Bishop of the Diocese of Connecticut. He graduated from Yale College and was ordained in 1811 before serving at St. Michael’s Church in Bloomingdale, New York, followed by St. James’ Church in New York City (1813-1820) and St. Paul’s Church in Boston (1820-1826). During this period, he earned a Doctor of Divinity degree from the University of Pennsylvania (1819) and taught Biblical Learning at the newly established General Theological Seminary (GTS) (1819-1820). In 1820, he transferred to Boston, where he served as the Rector of St. Paul’s Church.

Jarvis resigned from St. Paul’s in 1826 and spent the next nine years living in Europe, at which time he assembled his collection of fine Italian paintings. He returned to the United States in 1835 and began a professorship of Oriental Literature at Washington (Trinity) College; however, he resigned to become the Rector of Christ Church (Holy Trinity Church) in Middletown, Connecticut, in 1837. He would resign from that position in 1842.

Jarvis additionally served as Historiographer for The Episcopal Church (appointed in 1838) and wrote multiple books on the history of the church. He was a Trusteed of both Washington College and GTS and elected as a deputy to the 1844, 1847, and 1850 General Conventions. He died on March 26, 1851.

Edgar Legare Pennington, was born on January 15, 1891, in Madison, Georgia. He earned his Bachelor of Arts (1911) and Bachelor of Laws (1914) from the University of Georgia and practiced law for three years prior to serving in the United States Navy, during which time he survived the sinking of the USS President Lincoln by a German U-boat in 1918. After World War I, he pursued religious studies and was ordained in 1922. He served in multiple churches before rejoining the US Navy during World War II. He then served as Rector of St. John’s Church in Mobile, Alabama, until his death on September 10, 1951.

Pennington contributed not only to the understanding of The Episcopal Church’s history, particularly its American Colonial period, but also to the development of historical practices in The Episcopal Church. He was a co-founder of the Historical Magazine of the Protestant Episcopal Church, member of the Church Historical Society, and Historiographer of The Episcopal Church from 1949 to 1951.