History of Middlefield, (Otsego County) New York United States of America

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Biographies:

George Peck, clergyman and editor, was born in Middlefield, Otsego county, N.Y., Aug. 8, 1797; son of Luther and Annis (Caller) Peck; grandson of Jesse and Ruth (Hoyt) Peck, and a descendant of Henry Peck, who emigrated from England to America in the ship Hector in 1637 and settled in New Haven, Conn., in 1638. George Peck attended the district school, and when nineteen years old became active as a Methodist preacher. He was pastor and presiding elder in the Oneida conference, 1816-35; was principal of the Oneida conference seminary at Cazenovia, N.Y., 1885-89; editor of the Methodist Quarterly Review, 1840-48, and of the Christian Advocate, 1848-52. He returned to the Wyoming, Pa., conference in 1852, and was pastor of the church at Scranton and presiding elder of the Wyoming district, 1852-73. He was a member of thirteen general conferences, 1824-72, and a delegate to the first evangelical alliance in London in 1846. He received the honorary degree A.M. from Wesleyan university in 1835, and D.D. from Augusta college, Kentucky, in 1840. He was married, June 10, 1819, to Mary, daughter of Philip Myers of Kingston, Pa. Their sons, George Myers and Luther Wesley , were clergymen. He is the author of: Universalism Examined (1826); History of the Apostles and Evangelists (1836); Scripture Doctrine of Christian Perfection (1841); Rule of Faith (1844); Reply to Dr. Bascom's Defence of American Slavery (1845); Manly Character (1852); Wyoming, Its History, Romantic Adventures, etc. (1858); Early Methodism, within the Bounds of the Old Genesee Conference (1860): Our Country, Its Trials and Its Triumphs (1865); Life and Times of the Rev. George Peck, D. D. (1874). He died in Scranton, Pa., May 20, 1876.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Jesse Truesdell Peck, M.E. bishop, was born in Middlefield, N.Y., April 4, 1811; son of Luther and Annis (Coller) Peck, and brother of the Rev. George Peck . He was educated at the Oneida Conference seminary, Cazenovia, N.Y., and was licensed as a local preacher in 1829. He was married, Oct. 13, 1831, to Persis, daughter of Capt. David Wing of West Dennis, Mass.; was admitted to the Oneida conference, July 12, 1832, and was pastor of the churches at Dryden, Newark Valley, Skaneateles and Potsdam, N.Y., 1832-37. He was principal of the Gouverneur Wesleyan seminary, 1837-41; of the Troy Conference academy, Poultney, Vt., 1841-48; president of Dickinson college, Carlisle, Pa., 1848-52; pastor of the Foundry church, Washington, D.C., 1852-54; secretary and editor of the Tract Society of the Methodist Episcopal church, 1854-56, and pastor of the Green Street church, New York city, 1856-58. He was transferred to California in 1858, and was pastor and presiding older in San Francisco, Sacramento and Santa Clara, 1858-66, also president of the board of trustees of the University of the Pacific and of the State Bible society. He was pastor at Peekskill, Albany and Syracuse, N.Y., respectively, 1866-72; a founder of Syracuse university, president of its board of trustees and chairman of the building committee. He was elected bishop of the Methodist Episcopal church in 1872, and made a tour of Europe in 1881, holding conferences and studying educational systems. He was a member of several general conferences and a delegate to the Methodist Ecumenical conference in London in 1881. He received the degree of A.M. from Wesleyan university in 1888, D.D. from University college in 1846, and LL.D. from Willamette university in 1875. He is the author of: The Central Idea of Christianity (1855); The True Woman (1857); What Must I Do to be Saved (1858), and History of a Great Republic, considered from a Christian Standpoint (1868). He died in Syracuse, N.Y., May 17, 1883.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor