| Bio notes |
Formally established in Philadelphia in 1789, the Episcopalian Church was the successor to (and close associate of) the Church of England in the American colonies. The Church of England was beset by two major difficulties: that no bishop was sent to the colonies, thus preventing ordainment of new priests and confirmation of new laymen; and that Anglican clergymen were required by oath to fight against the patriots in the Revolutionary War, and subsequently forced to relocate to loyalist Canada. To resolve this difficulty William White, the chaplain of the Continental Congress, proposed that congregations form an American church that continued the traditions of but were otherwise separate from the Church of England, and in 1787 White was consecrated by English bishops as the bishop of Pennsylvania. In the 19th century the church expanded westward. |