Clarissa Danforth
Encyclopedia
Clarissa Danforth was the first woman ordained as a Free Will Baptist minister.
Danforth was born in Weathersfield, Vermont
in 1792. She heard Rev. John Colby
preach in 1809 on his way to Ohio and had a conversion experience. After her ordination in 1815, Danforth became an itinerant
preacher throughout northern New England. She began preaching in Chepachet, Rhode Island
and the surrounding areas in 1818 after taking over as pastor of the Chepachet Baptist Church when John Colby
died. Danforth spent most of her career in Rhode Island and helped lead the revival in Smithfield emanating from the Greenville Baptist Church. She also preached for periods in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. In 1822 she married Danford Richmond a Baptist minister from Pomfret, Connecticut, and they moved to New York where she preached only occasionally. Danforth died around 1855.
Danforth was born in Weathersfield, Vermont
Weathersfield, Vermont
Weathersfield is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,788 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 44.2 square miles , of which 43.8 square miles is land and 0.4 square mile is...
in 1792. She heard Rev. John Colby
John Colby
John Colby was an evangelist and itinerant preacher in the early Free Will Baptist movement in New England and various other American states....
preach in 1809 on his way to Ohio and had a conversion experience. After her ordination in 1815, Danforth became an itinerant
Itinerant
An itinerant is a person who travels from place to place with no fixed home. The term comes from the late 16th century: from late Latin itinerant , from the verb itinerari, from Latin iter, itiner ....
preacher throughout northern New England. She began preaching in Chepachet, Rhode Island
Chepachet, Rhode Island
Chepachet is a village and census-designated place in the town of Glocester in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It is centered at the intersection of U.S. Route 44 and RI Route 102...
and the surrounding areas in 1818 after taking over as pastor of the Chepachet Baptist Church when John Colby
John Colby
John Colby was an evangelist and itinerant preacher in the early Free Will Baptist movement in New England and various other American states....
died. Danforth spent most of her career in Rhode Island and helped lead the revival in Smithfield emanating from the Greenville Baptist Church. She also preached for periods in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. In 1822 she married Danford Richmond a Baptist minister from Pomfret, Connecticut, and they moved to New York where she preached only occasionally. Danforth died around 1855.
See also
- Ordination of womenOrdination of womenOrdination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...