Thomas De Witt Talmage (January 7, 1832April 12, 1902) was a preacher, clergyman and divine in the United States who held pastorates in the Reformed Church in America and Presbyterian Church. He was one of the most prominent religious leaders in the United States during the mid- to late-19th century, equaled as a pulpit orator perhaps only by Henry Ward Beecher. He also preached to crowds in England. During the 1860s and 70s, Talmage was a well-known reformer in New York City and was often involved in crusades against vice and crime.
During the last years of his life, Dr. Talmage ceased preaching and devoted himself to editing, writing, and lecturing. At different periods he was editor of the Christian at Work (1873–76), New York; the Advance (1877–79), Chicago; Frank Leslie's Sunday Magazine (1879–89), New York; and the Christian Herald (1890–1902), New York. Each week he was said to have preached to audiences of 8,000 people, and for many years his sermons were published regularly in more than 3,000 journals, through which he was said to reach 25,000,000 readers.
Biography
Early life and education
T. De Witt Talmage was born in what is now Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey and he was a member of the Reformed Church of Bound Brook (located on Main Street in South Bound Brook) and always had a close association to South Bound Brook. His ancestors included some of the earliest Dutch families who settled in New York. His father's ancestors came from Barton Stacy, England, and included founders of Southampton and East Hampton, New York.
Talmage earned an undergraduate degree at the University of the City of New York (now New York University). Following his graduation in 1853, Talmage studied law for a time before deciding on entering the ministry. He studied theology at the Reformed Dutch Theological Seminary in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Four of his brothers also entered the ministry, all of them earning the title Doctor of Divinity. John Van Nest Talmage was a missionary in China, while his brothers James and Goyn Talmage became noted preachers in their own right. The fifth brother Daniel Talmage was a successful merchant.
Pastoral career
Talmage began preaching in Belleville, New Jersey once he graduated in 1856. He spent two years at a pastorate in Syracuse, New York before moving in 1862 to Philadelphia to become the pastor for the Second Reformed Dutch Church. (In 1867 the denomination changed its name to the Reformed Church in America.) It was here that Talmage began to establish a reputation as a gifted orator and preacher. He also served as a chaplain for the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Philadelphia and the Reformed Dutch Church
Under his guidance, the church grew from a minor congregation to one of the most powerful and influential institutions in the city. Talmage began attracting large crowds almost from the time of his arrival. Despite his being called a "pulpit clown" and "mountebank" for his sensational sermons, Talmage attracted a growing audience. The church could no longer seat everyone who attended. Larger and wealthier congregations began to recruit him and in 1869, Talmage accepted an offer from the Central Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, New York.
Marriage and family
His first wife, Mary R. Avery, was from Brooklyn. They had two children together before she drowned in the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia on June 7, 1861.
In May 1863, Talmage married Susan Whittemore of Greenpoint, New York, a neighborhood of Brooklyn. They had five children together. Upon Susan's death after 32 years of marriage, Talmage inherited most of her estate, estimated at $200,000.
In January 1898, about three years after his wife died, Talmage married a third time, to 40-year-old Eleanor Collier of Allegheny City, Pennsylvania. Collier was a wealthy young widow, having been married to the late Judge Charles W. Collier. She was 27 years younger than Talmage.
Brooklyn and the Central Presbyterian Church
Once settled in Brooklyn, Talmage continued his dramatic services with even greater success than before. An example of one of his colorful performances was reported by a newspaper of the era: