Joseph Parrish Thompson (1819–1879) was an American abolitionist and Congregationalist minister. He was pastor of the
Broadway Tabernacle Church in New York from 1845 to 1871, (also known as
Broadway United Church of Christ and Second Free Presbyterian Church). His major life accomplishments include founding
The Independent, an anti-slavery religious weekly started in 1848, contributing and managing
The New Englander (later re-named the
Yale Review),
[3] served as president of the American Union Commission,
[4] being a member of the committee to create the
New York Metropolitan Museum of Art,
[5][6] played a major role in the development of 20 Congregational churches in Manhattan and Brooklyn. and assisted the Treaty of Berlin with the religious liberty clause.
[7] Biography
Joseph Parrish Thompson was born in
Philadelphia, August 7, 1819, the son of Isaac Thompson and Mary Ann (Hanson). He graduated from
Yale University in 1838, having been a member of
Skull and Bones. He pursued further theological studies at
Andover Theological Seminary and New Haven, and was ordained pastor of the Chapel Street church in New Haven in November 1840.
Joseph Parrish Thompson was pastor of the Chapel street church in New Haven from 1840 to 1845.
[2] During his years at New Haven, he was one of the originators of
The New Englander, a Congregational
quarterly review, later renamed the
Yale Review.
[7]He was called to the pastoral charge of the
Broadway Tabernacle church, at one time the largest building in New York City, in 1845. He served there as pastor from 15 April of that year until 1871.
[8] Dr. Thompson preached the church's anti-slavery beliefs, supporting women's
suffrage (voting) and promoting the
abolition of alcoholic drinks. He frequently preached to a congregation of 2,500 parishioners. Black pastors were invited as guest preachers.
William Lloyd Garrison,
Frederick Douglass, and
Sojourner Truth spoke at the church. Rioters tried to burn the church and Dr. Thompson's home in 1863, but they were stopped by members of the congregation.
[9] A Confederate sympathizer attempted to shoot Dr. Thompson during a worship service because of his deep loyalty to the Union. During his time at the Broadway Tabernacle, he also played a major role in the development of 20 Congregational churches in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Dr. Thompson convened the first national meeting of Congregational churches in Albany in 1852. About 500 ministers and delegates from 17 different states attended this historical gathering.
[10] Thompson supported mission activities around the world. The church carried out educational and religious activities in poor neighborhoods of New York City, including Hell's Kitchen, where it established the Bethany Mission in 1868. He also served as manager of the American Congregational Union and of the American Home Missionary Society.
[8]During 1848 until 1861
The Independent was edited by: Dr. Thompson,
Richard Salter Storrs, and
Leonard Bacon. The publication's goal was to promote
Congregationalism and was also an important voice in support of
abolitionism and
women's suffrage.
The Independent published
Emily Dickinson's poems and helped her become more prominent.
[11]Dr. Thompson often traveled to Washington, DC, where he spoke with
President Abraham Lincoln about issues related to the Civil War. Thompson collaborated further with President Lincoln through his work as president of the Christian Union Commission (also known as the American Union Commission).
[3][4]Joseph Parrish Thompson was one of the initial members of the
Union League.
[12] Doctor Thompson's address "
Revolution Against Free Government, Not A Right, But A Crime"[13] about the rights of man and the principles of free government, delivered before the
Union League Club in 1884 is considered instrumental to the club's goal of supporting the
Union and
abolition.
[14] The Union Leagues were a group of men's clubs established during the
American Civil War to promote loyalty to the
Union, the
Republican Party, and the policies of
Abraham Lincoln. The founders aimed to win the political governing elite over to support of the Union and abolition. They also believed that a centralized government was essential to their prosperity. Members of The Union League Club were instrumental in establishing The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1870, Dr. Thompson was a member of the committee and founder of the museum. He was one of the speakers at the initial meeting held to discuss its foundation.
[6]In 1852, after the death of his first wife, Lucy Olivia Bartlett Thompson, he went to Palestine, Egypt, and other countries in Asia and Africa. He made subsequent, studies and writings about the Orient, and he became well known as art authority in
Egyptology. Many of his writings were printed in the
North American Review, the
Bibliotheca Sacra, the
Journal of the American Geographical and Statistical Society, in Smith's
Dict. of the Bible, and the revised edition of Kitto's
Cyclop. of Biblical Lit
