William Buell Sprague facts for kids

An old picture of William Buell Sprague.

William Buell Sprague (born October 16, 1795, in Andover, Connecticut; died May 7, 1876, in Flushing, New York) was an important American minister. He was known for his work as a Christian clergyman in both Congregational and Presbyterian churches. Sprague also created a huge collection of biographies called Annals of the American Pulpit. This set of nine books, published between 1857 and 1869, contained life stories of many leading American Protestant ministers who had passed away before 1850.

William Buell Sprague's Life Story

Early Life and Education

William Buell Sprague studied at Yale University, where he graduated in 1815. He then continued his studies at Princeton Theological Seminary. There, he learned from famous teachers like Dr. Archibald Alexander and Samuel Miller.

Career as a Minister

In 1819, Sprague became an assistant minister at a church in West Springfield, Massachusetts. The next year, he became the main minister there and served for nine years. After that, he moved to Albany, New York. He became the pastor of the Second Presbyterian Church and worked there for 40 years.

Sprague's Writings

Sprague wrote many books during his life. Some of his notable works include biographies of other important figures. He wrote about Rev. Edward Dorr Griffin (1838), Timothy Dwight (1845), and Rev. Jedidiah Morse (1874). His biggest writing project was Annals of the American Pulpit. This massive collection included biographies of ministers from many different Christian groups. Even though his collected works were never published together, Sprague wrote over 150 individual sermons, speeches, and talks.

His Amazing Collection of Autographs

William Buell Sprague was also a passionate collector of historical papers and documents. He became the first person ever to gather a complete set of autographs from all the people who signed the United States Declaration of Independence. He finished this impressive task by February 1833.

He also collected signatures from everyone who helped create the United States Constitution in 1787. His collection also included autographs of all the U.S. presidents. He had signatures from all government officials during the presidencies of Washington, John Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and John Quincy Adams. This included vice presidents, cabinet members, Supreme Court justices, and foreign ministers.

Sprague also collected signatures of military officers from all nations involved in the American Revolutionary War. He even had autographs of famous historical figures like Saint Augustine. By the time he died, he was considered America's top "philographer." A philographer is someone who loves and collects autographs. His collection had nearly 100,000 autographs. This was likely the largest private collection in the world at that time. He left this amazing collection to his son.

Later Life and Death

In 1846, Sprague was elected as a member of the American Antiquarian Society. He was married three times and had children. After he retired from his church in Albany in 1870, he lived with his son in Flushing, New York. He passed away there in 1876 and was buried in Albany Rural Cemetery in Menands, New York.

William Buell Sprague's Books

Here are some of the books William Buell Sprague wrote:

• "Letters on Practical Subjects from a Clergyman of New England to His Daughter" (1822)
• "Letters from Europe First Published in the New York Observer" (1828)
• "Lectures to Young People" (1830)
• "Lectures on the Revival of Religion" (1832)
• "Hints Designed to Regulate the Intercourse of Christians" (1834)
• "Lectures Illustrating the Contrast Between True Christianity and Various Other Systems" (1837)
• "Memoir of the late Rev. Edward Dorr Griffin, D.D." (1838)
• "Letters to Young Men" (1844)
• "Life of Timothy Dwight" (1845)
• "Aids to Early Religion" (1847)
• "Words to a Young Man's Conscience by a Father" (1848)
• "Monitory Letters to Church Members" (published without his name, 1855)
• "Visits to European Celebrities" (1855)
• "Annals of the American Pulpit" (9 volumes, 1857–1869)
• "Memoirs of the Rev. John McDowell, D.D., and the Rev. William A. McDowell" (1864)
• "The Life of Jedidiah Morse" (1874)