Edward Raymond Ames was an American Methodist bishop. He was known as a confidant of President Lincoln and for his work with the Native Americans and in the Southern States after the Civil War.
Background
Edward Raymond Ames was born on May 20, 1806 in Amesville, Ohio, United States and was a descendant of William Ames, who came to Braintree, Massachussets, from England in 1643. His grandfather, Sylvanus, was a graduate of Harvard in the class of 1767, and died at Valley Forge while serving as chaplain in Washington's army. Ames' father, also Sylvanus, was born in Bridgewater, Massachussets, in 1771, and in 1795 married Abigail "Nabby" Lee Johnson. Two years later they migrated westward and finally settled in what is now Adams County, Ohio, at a place later called Amesville.
His father was a leader in the county, serving as sheriff, colonel of the militia, trustee of Ohio University, representative in the legislature, and, from 1813 to 1823, associate judge. In his home, which was the resort of the politicians of southern Ohio and a favorite stopping place for public men on their long trips from East to West, young Ames had opportunity to see many prominent people and hear much about the political movements of the day.
Education
Ames' formal education was meager, but he made good use of the local Western Library Association, later the Coonskin Library, said to have been the first public library founded in the Northwest Territory, though not the first incorporated, in which his father was one of the original stockholders. For two or three years he attended Ohio University, supporting himself by teaching and other work.
Career
In 1827 Ames, being induced by Bishop Robert R. Roberts, attended a session of the Illinois Methodist Conference, and here he met two men who persuaded him to open a seminary at Lebanon. The school was a success, and was the beginning of McKendree College.
In 1830 he joined the Illinois Conference, and became an itinerant minister. Ten years later the General Conference elected him corresponding secretary of the Missionary Society for the South and West. During the four years that he filled this office he traveled some 25, 000 miles. On one trip he passed over the entire frontier from Lake Superior to Texas, camping out during almost the entire trip, at one period, it is said, so destitute of provisions that for two days the only nourishment he and his companions had was a little moistened maple sugar. His task was to systematize the missionary work, take an inventory of the property, and obtain land grants from the government for educational work among the Indians.
In 1844 he returned to the itinerancy and in 1848 was elected to succeed Matthew Simpson as president of Indiana Asbury University, but declined. In 1852 he was made bishop. His episcopal residence was Indianapolis, and during the Civil War he was energetic in behalf of the Union. He was the only Methodist bishop appointed chaplain in the army, and during the winter of 1861 preached to the soldiers in the various camps.
In January 1862, with Hamilton Fish, he was appointed by the War Department as commissioner to visit Union prisoners at Richmond and provide for their comfort at the expense of the United States. The appointment of the commission aroused indignation in the South, and Bishop Ames's presence upon it seems to have given special offense. Professor William W. Sweet quotes from a letter from a Confederate officer, an ex-Methodist minister, to Jefferson Davis, warning him not to allow Ames to enter the lines, characterizing him as an "astute politician, who in the garb of a Christian minister and with the specious plea of 'Humanity' upon his lips, would insinuate himself into the very heart of that Government whose very foundation he would most gladly sap and destroy". The commission was not permitted to enter Richmond.
The last years of his life were spent in Baltimore, where he died at the age of seventy-three.
Achievements
Ames was instrumental in the establishing of McKendree University and missions schools among the various tribes west of Arkansas.
Politics
Ames was a firm supporter of the Union during the American Civil War.
Personality
Ames had a clear, practical mind and business ability of a high order. He was strong in his convictions, imperious in manner, and sometimes dealt with a heavy hand. His sermons were usually conversational in style, but he was capable of impassioned oratory, and was at his best when addressing the thousands who gathered at Western camp meetings. His talent as an organizer and administrator was of great value to the church.
Connections
Ames was married twice: first to Henrietta Beach in January, 1834, and then to Mahala Hanson Porter on October 30, 1846.
