List of Moderators of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America
The office of the Moderator of the General Assembly was the highest elected position in the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA). The Moderator was responsible for presiding over the meeting of the General Assembly, which was held annually between 1789 and 1956. After the meeting, which lasted for about a week, the Moderator served as an ambassador of the denomination throughout the remainder of the term. After completing the term, most former Moderators took on the role of a church statesman.
Prior to the Old School–New School Controversy
The chart below shows the Moderators and place of meetings from 1789 when the PCUSA was formed, until 1837, after which the denomination was divided into two factions by the Old School–New School Controversy until 1869.[ 1]
Number and Year
Place of Meeting
Moderator
Online Minutes
Convened the 1st GA, 1789
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Witherspoon
Minutes of the 1789 General Assembly
1st GA, 1789
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Rodgers
Minutes of the 1789 General Assembly
2nd GA, 1790
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Robert Smith
Minutes of the 1790 General Assembly
3rd GA, 1791
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Woodhull
Minutes of the 1791 General Assembly
4th GA, 1792
Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Rev. John King
Minutes of the 1792 General Assembly
5th GA, 1793
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Latta
Minutes of the 1793 General Assembly
6th GA, 1794
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Alexander McWhorter
Minutes of the 1794 General Assembly
7th GA, 1795
Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Rev. John McKnight
Minutes of the 1795 General Assembly
8th GA, 1796
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Robert Davidson
Minutes of the 1796 General Assembly
9th GA, 1797
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Mackay Tennent
Minutes of the 1797 General Assembly
10th GA, 1798
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Blair Smith
Minutes of the 1798 General Assembly
11th GA, 1799
Winchester, Virginia
Rev. Samuel Stanhope Smith
Minutes of the 1799 General Assembly
12th GA, 1800
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Joseph Clark
Minutes of the 1800 General Assembly
13th GA, 1801
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Nathaniel Irwin
Minutes of the 1801 General Assembly
14th GA, 1802
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Azel Roe
Minutes of the 1802 General Assembly
15th GA, 1803
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Hall
Minutes of the 1803 General Assembly
16th GA, 1804
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Francis Armstrong
Minutes of the 1804 General Assembly
17th GA, 1805
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Richards
Minutes of the 1805 General Assembly
18th GA, 1806
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Samuel Miller
Minutes of the 1806 General Assembly
19th GA, 1807
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Archibald Alexander
Minutes of the 1807 General Assembly
20th GA, 1808
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Philip Milledoler
Minutes of the 1808 General Assembly
21st GA, 1809
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Drury Lacy
Minutes of the 1809 General Assembly
22nd GA, 1810
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Brodhead Romeyn
Minutes of the 1810 General Assembly
23rd GA, 1811
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Eliphalet Nott
Minutes of the 1811 General Assembly
24th GA, 1812
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Andrew Flinn
Minutes of the 1812 General Assembly
25th GA, 1813
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Samuel Blatchford
Minutes of the 1813 General Assembly
26th GA, 1814
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Inglis
Minutes of the 1814 General Assembly
27th GA, 1815
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Neill
Minutes of the 1815 General Assembly
28th GA, 1816
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Blythe
Minutes of the 1816 General Assembly
29th GA, 1817
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Jonas Coe
Minutes of the 1817 General Assembly
30th GA, 1818
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Jacob Jones Janeway
Minutes of the 1818 General Assembly
31st GA, 1819
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Holt Rice
Minutes of the 1819 General Assembly
32nd GA, 1820
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John McDowell
Minutes of the 1820 General Assembly
33rd GA, 1821
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Hill
Minutes of the 1821 General Assembly
34th GA, 1822
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Obadiah Jennings
Minutes of the 1822 General Assembly
35th GA, 1823
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Chester
Minutes of the 1823 General Assembly
36th GA, 1824
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Ashbel Green
Minutes of the 1824 General Assembly
37th GA, 1825
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Stephen N. Rowan
Minutes of the 1825 General Assembly
38th GA, 1826
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Thomas McAuley
Minutes of the 1826 General Assembly
39th GA, 1827
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Francis Herron
Minutes of the 1827 General Assembly
40th GA, 1828
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Ezra Stiles Ely
Minutes of the 1828 General Assembly
41st GA, 1829
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Benjamin Holt Rice
Minutes of the 1829 General Assembly
42nd GA, 1830
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Ezra Fisk
Minutes of the 1830 General Assembly
43rd GA, 1831
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Nathan S.S. Beman
Minutes of the 1831 General Assembly
44th GA, 1832
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. James Hoge
Minutes of the 1832 General Assembly
45th GA, 1833
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Anderson McDowell
Minutes of the 1833 General Assembly
46th GA, 1834
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Philip Lindsley
Minutes of the 1834 General Assembly
47th GA, 1835
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Wirt Phillips
Minutes of the 1835 General Assembly
48th GA, 1836
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Witherspoon
Minutes of the 1836 General Assembly
49th GA, 1837
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. David Elliott
Minutes of the 1837 General Assembly
Old School
The chart below shows the Moderators, and the place of meetings, of the Old School branch from 1838 until 1869, after which the two branches reunited into one denomination.
Number and Year
Place of Meeting
Moderator
Online Minutes
50th GA, 1838
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Swan Plumer
Minutes of the 1838 General Assembly
51st GA, 1839
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Joshua Lacy Wilson
Minutes of the 1839 General Assembly
52nd GA, 1840
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Morrison Engles
Minutes of the 1840 General Assembly
53rd GA, 1841
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Robert Jefferson Breckinridge
Minutes of the 1841 General Assembly
54th GA, 1842
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Todd Edgar
Minutes of the 1842 General Assembly
55th GA, 1843
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Gardiner Spring
Minutes of the 1843 General Assembly
56th GA, 1844
Louisville, Kentucky
Rev. George Junkin
Minutes of the 1844 General Assembly
57th GA, 1845
Cincinnati, Ohio
Rev. John Michael Krebs
Minutes of the 1845 General Assembly
58th GA, 1846
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Charles Hodge
Minutes of the 1846 General Assembly
59th GA, 1847
Richmond, Virginia
Rev. James Henley Thornwell
Minutes of the 1847 General Assembly
60th GA, 1848
Baltimore, Maryland
Rev. Alexander T. McGill
Minutes not available online
61st GA, 1849
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rev. Nicholas Murray
Minutes not available online
62nd GA, 1850
Cincinnati, Ohio
Rev. Aaron W. Leland
Minutes of the 1850 General Assembly
63rd GA, 1851
St. Louis, Missouri
Rev. Edward P. Humphrey
Minutes of the 1851 General Assembly
64th GA, 1852
Charleston, South Carolina
Rev. John Chase Lord
Minutes of the 1852 General Assembly
65th GA, 1853
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Clarke Young
Minutes of the 1853 General Assembly
66th GA, 1854
Buffalo, New York
Rev. Henry Augustus Boardman
Minutes of the 1854 General Assembly
67th GA, 1855
Nashville, Tennessee
Rev. Nathan Lewis Rice
Minutes of the 1855 General Assembly
68th GA, 1856
New York, New York
Rev. Francis McFarland
Minutes of the 1856 General Assembly
69th GA, 1857
Lexington, Kentucky
Rev. Cortlandt Van Rensselaer
Minutes of the 1857 General Assembly
70th GA, 1858
New Orleans, Louisiana
Rev. William Anderson Scott
Minutes of the 1858 General Assembly
71st GA, 1859
Indianapolis, Indiana
Rev. William L. Breckinridge
Minutes of the 1859 General Assembly
72nd GA, 1860
Rochester, New York
Rev. John William Yeomans
Minutes of the 1860 General Assembly
73rd GA, 1861
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Chester Backus
Minutes of the 1861 General Assembly
74th GA, 1862
Columbus, Ohio
Rev. Charles Clinton Beatty
Minutes of the 1862 General Assembly
75th GA, 1863
Peoria, Illinois
Rev. John Hunter Morrison
Minutes of the 1863 General Assembly
76th GA, 1864
Newark, New Jersey
Rev.James Wood
Minutes of the 1864 General Assembly
77th GA, 1865
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rev. John Cameron Lowrie
Minutes of the 1865 General Assembly
78th GA, 1866
St. Louis, Missouri
Rev. Robert L. Stanton
Minutes of the 1866 General Assembly
79th GA, 1867
Cincinnati, Ohio
Rev. Phineas Densmore Gurley
Minutes of the 1867 General Assembly
80th GA, 1868
Albany, New York
Rev. George W. Musgrave
Minutes of the 1868 General Assembly
81st GA, 1869
New York, New York
Rev. M. W. Jocobus
Minutes of the 1869 General Assembly
New School
The chart below shows the Moderators, and the place of meetings, of the New School branch from 1838 until 1869, after which the two branches reunited into one denomination.[ 1]
Number and Year
Place of Meeting
Moderator
Online Minutes
50th GA, 1838
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Samuel Fisher
Minutes of the 1838 General Assembly
51st GA, 1839
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Baxter Dickinson
Minutes of the 1839 General Assembly
52nd GA, 1840
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. William Wisner
Minutes of the 1840 General Assembly
53rd GA, 1843
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Ansel Doan Eddy
Minutes of the 1843 General Assembly
54th GA, 1846
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Samuel Hanson Cox
Minutes of the 1846 General Assembly
55th GA, 1847
Cincinnati, Ohio
Rev. Samuel Hanson Cox
Minutes of the 1847 General Assembly
56th GA, 1849
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Philip Courtlandt Hay
Minutes of the 1849 General Assembly
57th GA, 1850
Detroit , Michigan
Rev. David H. Riddle
Minutes of the 1850 General Assembly
58th GA, 1851
Utica, New York
Rev. Albert Barnes
Minutes of the 1851 General Assembly
59th GA, 1852
Washington, D.C.
Rev. William Adams
Minutes of the 1852 General Assembly
60th GA, 1853
Buffalo, New York
Rev. Diarca Howe Allen
Minutes of the 1853 General Assembly
61st GA, 1854
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Thomas H. Skinner
Minutes of the 1854 General Assembly
62nd GA, 1855
St. Louis, Missouri
Rev. William Carpenter Wisner
Minutes of the 1855 General Assembly
63rd GA, 1856
New York, New York
Rev. Laurens Perseus Hickok
Minutes of the 1856 General Assembly
64th GA, 1857
Cleveland, Ohio
Rev. Samuel W. Fisher
Minutes of the 1857 General Assembly
65th GA, 1858
Chicago , Illinois
Rev. Matthew L. P. Thompson
Minutes of the 1858 General Assembly
66th GA, 1859
Wilmington, Delaware
Rev. Robert Wilson Patterson
Minutes of the 1859 General Assembly
67th GA, 1860
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Rev. Thornton Anthony Mills
Minutes of the 1860 General Assembly
68th GA, 1861
Syracuse, New York
Rev. Jonathan Bailey Condit
Minutes of the 1861 General Assembly
69th GA, 1862
Cincinnati, Ohio
Rev. George Duffield
Minutes of the 1862 General Assembly
70th GA, 1863
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Rev. Henry B. Smith
Minutes of the 1863 General Assembly
71st GA, 1864
Dayton, Ohio
Rev. Thomas Brainerd
Minutes of the 1864 General Assembly
72nd GA, 1865
Brooklyn, New York
Rev. James Boylan Shaw
Minutes of the 1865 General Assembly
73rd GA, 1866
St. Louis, Missouri
Rev. Samuel Miles Hopkins
Minutes of the 1866 General Assembly
74th GA, 1867
Rochester, New York
Rev. Henry Addison Nelson
Minutes of the 1867 General Assembly
75th GA, 1868
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Rev. Jonathan French Stearns
Minutes of the 1868 General Assembly
76th GA, 1869
New York, New York
Rev. Philemon Halsted Fowler
Minutes of the 1869 General Assembly
Reunited Old and New Schools
The chart below shows the Moderators, and the place of meetings 1870 when the Old and New Schools had reunited until 1958 when the PCUSA merged with the United Presbyterian Church of North America (UPCNA) to form the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America .[ 1]
Number and Year
Place of Meeting
Moderator
Online Minutes
82nd GA, 1870
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
J. Trumbull Backus
Minutes of the 1870 General Assembly
83rd GA, 1871
Chicago, Illinois
Zephaniah Moore Humphrey
Minutes of the 1871 General Assembly
84th GA, 1872
Detroit, Michigan
Samuel J. Niccolls
Minutes of the 1872 General Assembly
85th GA, 1873
Baltimore, Maryland
Howard Crosby
Minutes of the 1873 General Assembly
86th GA, 1874
St. Louis, Missouri
Samuel J. Wilson
Minutes of the 1874 General Assembly
87th GA, 1875
Cleveland, Ohio
Edward D. Morris
Minutes of the 1875 General Assembly
88th GA, 1876
Brooklyn, New York
Henry Jackson Van Dyke
Minutes of the 1876 General Assembly
89th GA, 1877
Chicago, Illinois
James Eells
Minutes not available online
90th GA, 1878
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Francis Landey Patton
Minutes of the 1878 General Assembly
91st GA, 1879
Saratoga, New York
Henry Harris Jessup
Minutes of the 1879 General Assembly
92nd GA, 1880
Madison, Wisconsin
William M. Paxton
Minutes of the 1880 General Assembly
93rd GA, 1881
Buffalo, New York
Henry Darling
Minutes of the 1881 General Assembly
94th GA, 1882
Springfield, Illinois
Herrick Johnson
Minutes of the 1882 General Assembly
95th GA, 1883
Saratoga, New York
Edwin Francis Hatfield
Minutes of the 1883 General Assembly
96th GA, 1884
Saratoga, New York
George P. Hays
Minutes of the 1884 General Assembly
97th GA, 1885
Cincinnati, Ohio
Elijah R. Craven
Minutes of the 1885 General Assembly
98th GA, 1886
Minneapolis, Minnesota
David C. Marquis
Minutes of the 1886 General Assembly
99th GA, 1887
Omaha, Nebraska
Joseph T. Smith
Minutes of the 1887 General Assembly
100th GA, 1888
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Charles L. Thompson
Minutes of the 1888 General Assembly
101st GA, 1889
New York, New York
William Chas. Roberts
Minutes of the 1889 General Assembly
102nd GA, 1890
Saratoga, New York
William Eves Moore
Minutes of the 1890 General Assembly
103rd GA, 1891
Detroit, Michigan
W. Henry Green
Minutes of the 1891 General Assembly
104th GA, 1892
Portland, Oregon
William C. Young
Minutes of the 1892 General Assembly
105th GA, 1893
Washington, D.C.
Willis Greer Craig
Minutes not available online
106th GA, 1894
Saratoga, New York
S.A. Mutchmore
Minutes of the 1894 General Assembly
107th GA, 1895
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Robert Russell Booth
Minutes of the 1895 General Assembly
108th GA, 1896
Saratoga, New York
John Lindsay Withrow
Minutes of the 1896 General Assembly
109th GA, 1897
Winona Lake, Indiana
Sheldon Jackson
Minutes of the 1897 General Assembly
110th GA, 1898
Winona Lake, Indiana
Wallace Radcliffe
Minutes of the 1898 General Assembly
111th GA, 1899
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Robert F. Sample
Minutes of the 1899 General Assembly
112th GA, 1900
St. Louis, Missouri
Charles A. Dickey
Minutes of the 1900 General Assembly
113th GA, 1901
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Henry Collin Minton
Minutes of the 1901 General Assembly
114th GA, 1902
New York, New York
Henry van Dyke
Minutes of the 1902 General Assembly
115th GA, 1903
Los Angeles, California
Robert F. Coyle
Minutes of the 1903 General Assembly
116th GA, 1904
Buffalo, New York
J. Addison Henry
Minutes of the 1904 General Assembly
117th GA, 1905
Winona Lake, Indiana
James D. Moffat
Minutes of the 1905 General Assembly
118th GA, 1906
Des Moines, Iowa
Hunter Corbett
Minutes of the 1906 General Assembly
119th GA, 1907
Columbus, Ohio
William H. Roberts
Minutes of the 1907 General Assembly
120th GA, 1908
Kansas City, Missouri
Baxter P. Fullerton
Minutes of the 1908 General Assembly
121st GA, 1909
Denver, Colorado
James M. Barkley
Minutes of the 1909 General Assembly
122nd GA, 1910
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Charles Little
Minutes of the 1910 General Assembly
123rd GA, 1911
Atlantic City, New Jersey
John F. Carson
Minutes of the 1911 General Assembly
124th GA, 1912
Louisville, Kentucky
Mark A. Matthews
Minutes of the 1912 General Assembly
125th GA, 1913
Atlanta, Georgia
John Timothy Stone
Minutes of the 1913 General Assembly
126th GA, 1914
Chicago, Illinois
Maitland Alexander
Minutes of the 1914 General Assembly
127th GA, 1915
Rochester, New York
J. Ross Stevenson
Minutes of the 1915 General Assembly
128th GA, 1916
Atlantic City, New Jersey
John Abner Marquis
Minutes of the 1916 General Assembly
129th GA, 1917
Dallas, Texas
J. Wilbur Chapman
Minutes of the 1917 General Assembly
130th GA, 1918
Columbus, Ohio
J. Frank Smith
Minutes of the 1918 General Assembly
131st GA, 1919
St. Louis, Missouri
Elder John Willis Baer
Minutes of the 1919 General Assembly
132nd GA, 1920
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Samuel S. Palmer
Minutes of the 1920 General Assembly
133rd GA, 1921
Winona Lake, Indiana
Henry C. Swearingen
Minutes of the 1921 General Assembly
134th GA, 1922
Des Moines, Iowa
Calvin C. Hays
Minutes of the 1922 General Assembly
135th GA, 1923
Indianapolis, Indiana
Charles F. Wishart
Minutes not available online
136th GA, 1924
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Clarence Edward Macartney
Minutes not available online
137th GA, 1925
Columbus, Ohio
Charles R. Erdman
Minutes not available online
138th GA, 1926
Baltimore, Maryland
William Oxley Thompson
Minutes not available online
139th GA, 1927
San Francisco, California
Elder Robert Elliott Speer
Minutes not available online
140th GA, 1928
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Hugh Kelso Walker
Minutes not available online
141st GA, 1929
St. Paul, Minnesota
Cleland Boyd McAfee
Minutes not available online
142nd GA, 1930
Cincinnati, Ohio
Hugh Thomson Kerr
Minutes not available online
143rd GA, 1931
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Lewis Seymour Mudge
Minutes not available online
144th GA, 1932
Denver, Colorado
Charles William Kerr
Minutes not available online
145th GA, 1933
Columbus, Ohio
John McDowell
Minutes not available online
146th GA, 1934
Cleveland, Ohio
William Chalmers Covert
Minutes not available online
147th GA, 1935
Cincinnati, Ohio
Joseph Anderson Vance
Minutes not available online
148th GA, 1936
Syracuse, New York
Henry Buck Master
Minutes not available online
149th GA, 1937
Columbus, Ohio
William Hiram Foulkes
Minutes not available online
150th GA, 1938
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Charles Whitefield Welch
Minutes not available online
151st GA, 1939
Cleveland, Ohio
Elder Sam Higginbottom
Minutes not available online
152nd GA, 1940
Rochester, New York
William Lindsay Young
Minutes not available online
153rd GA, 1941
St. Louis, Missouri
Herbert Booth Smith
Minutes not available online
154th GA, 1942
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Stuart Nye Hutchison
Minutes not available online
155th GA, 1943
Detroit, Michigan
Henry Sloane Coffin
Minutes not available online
156th GA, 1944
Chicago, Illinois
Roy Ewing Vale
Minutes not available online
157th GA, 1945
Minneapolis, Minnesota
William Blakeman Lampe
Minutes not available online
158th GA, 1946
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Frederick W. Evans
Minutes not available online
159th GA, 1947
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Elder Wilbur LaRoe, Jr.
Minutes not available online
160th GA, 1948
Seattle, Washington
Jese Hays Baird
Minutes not available online
161st GA, 1949
Buffalo, New York
Clifford E. Barbour
Minutes not available online
162nd GA, 1950
Cincinnati, Ohio
Hugh Ivans Evans
Minutes not available online
163rd GA, 1951
Cincinnati, Ohio
H. Ray Anderson
Minutes not available online
164th GA, 1952
New York, New York
Hermann Nelson Morse
Minutes not available online
165th GA, 1953
Minneapolis, Minnesota
John Alexander Mackay
Minutes not available online
166th GA, 1954
Detroit, Michigan
Ralph Waldo Lloyd
Minutes not available online
167th GA, 1955
Los Angeles, California
Paul S. Wright
Minutes not available online
168th GA, 1956
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Elder David W. Proffitt
Minutes not available online
169th GA, 1957
Omaha, Nebraska
Harold R. Martin
Minutes not available online
170th GA, 1958
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Harold R. Martin
Minutes not available online
See also
References
^ a b c Proceedings of the 218th (2008) General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), p. 1484
Pre-schism (1789–1837) Old School (1838–1869) New School (1838–1869) After reuniting (1869–1958)