BISHOP JOHN F. SPALDING AND LAVINIA SPALDING PAPERS
Scope and Contents
The Bishop John F. Spalding (1828-1894) and Lavinia Spalding (1840-1929) Papers span the years 1878-1935. Material includes correspondence, manuscripts and scrapbooks. John Spalding was the first Bishop of Colorado and 104th in succession in the American episcopate. He and his wife founded St. Luke's Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Their daughter, Sarah Spalding, wrote a history of Saint Luke's Hospital which is included in the collection.
Papers consist of correspondence received and sent from Judge Smith, Bishop Coleman, Canon Fletcher, William Hyde, Melville Fuller, Ellen Glasglow, Henry Read and Reverend George Z. Gray of the Cambridge Divinity School.
The series includes correspondence received and the manuscript, Recollections and Reflections, Denver 50 Years Ago, written by Lavinia Spalding about the family's move to Denver and their early years in the city.
Series comprises two manuscripts written by Sarah Spalding about her family and the history of Saint Luke's Hospital.
The two scrapbooks contain correspondence sent to or material collected by Bishop John F. Spalding and his wife, Lavinia. The material consists of correspondence, brochures, programs, invitations and newspaper clippings revolving around the church and social events.
Dates
- 1878-1960
Copyright
All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from material in the collection should be discussed with the appropriate librarian or archivist. Permission for publication may be given on behalf of the Denver Public Library as the owner of the physical item. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which also must be obtained by the customer. The Library does not assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or publication rights of the manuscript held by the writer, heirs, donors, or executors. Reproduction restrictions are decided on a case-by-case basis.
Biographical / Historical
John Franklin Spalding was born in Belgrade, Maine on Aug. 25, 1828. Raised on a farm with few educational advantages, he paid for his college tuition by working on neighboring farms. John Spalding graduated from Bowdoin College in 1853 and General Theological Seminary in 1857. Bishop Burgess admitted him to the diaconate in Portland, Maine in July 1857. He advanced to the Episcopalian priesthood in July 1858 at Christ Church located in Gardiner, Maine. The following four years he served in various capacities for Episcopal churches in Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In 1862, John Spalding relocated to Erie, Pennsylvania to serve as rector. In 1873, he received a telegram "You were this day unanimously elected Bishop of Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico." Spalding was consecrated Bishop in Erie at his Parish Church the last day of December 1873.
The Spaldings left for Denver in February 1874 with their five children: Franklin Spencer, William, John Edward, Elisabeth and Sarah. They arrived in Denver and took up residence at Stout and 17th Streets. Once they settled, Bishop Spalding and his wife, Lavinia, became aware of the lack of a medical facility in the area. They became actively involved in raising money to build a hospital. They established St. Luke's Hospital, which opened in 1881.
In addition to opening the hospital, Bishop John Spalding established the College of St. John the Evangelist, with Matthews Hall as the theological school, Wolf Hall, a school for girls and Jervis Hall, a school for boys. He also set up a home for consumptives and more than 12 new churches with rectories. He received the honorary degree of D.D. from Trinity College, Connecticut in 1874. He is the author of Modern Infidelity (1867), The Cathedral System (1880), The Higher Education of Women (1886), The Church and Its Apostolic Ministry (1887) and Socialism and Other Arguments (1903). Bishop John Spalding died while visiting his son, the Reverend Franklin Spencer Spalding, in Erie, Pennsylvania on March 9, 1902.
Lavinia was born in Erie, Pennsylvania. She attended Springer Institution in New York. Lavinia Spalding served for 45 years as President of the Ladies Aid Society for the St. Luke's Hospital. She established the Hospital's annual charity ball. Throughout her life, she remained active in charitable, religious and social activities. Lavinia Spencer Spalding died in Denver, Colorado on December 9, 1929.
Extent
2 Boxes
Language of Materials
English
Other Finding Aids
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Denver Fortnightly Club donated the manuscripts by Sarah Griswold Spalding in 1960 to the Denver Public Library. On April 1, 2000, Michael D. Heaston donated a letter from Bishop Spalding to Judge Smith. The source for the rest of the material is unknown.
PROCESSED BY:
Ellen Zazzarino
December 2000
REVISED AND ENCODED BY:
Ann Brown
2009
Cynthia Rand
December 2004
PROJECT MANAGER:
Ellen Zazzarino
- Correspondence. Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Episcopal Church -- Clergy -- Colorado.
- Families -- Colorado -- Denver -- 19th century. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Hospitals -- Colorado -- Denver. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Photographs. Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Scrapbooks. Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Spalding, John Franklin, 1828-1902 -- Archives.
- Spalding, Lavinia Deborah Spencer, 1840-1929 -- Archives.
- Spalding, Sarah Griswold, 1871-1960 -- Archives.
- Spouses of clergy -- Colorado. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- St. Luke's Hospital (Denver, Colo.) -- History.
- Title
- BISHOP JOHN F. SPALDING AND LAVINIA SPALDING PAPERS
- Date
- Revised 2009
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Denver Public Library, Western History and Genealogy Repository
