Samuel Eusebius McCorkle
Samuel Eusebius McCorkle was an influential 18th-century Presbyterian minister and educator born in 1746 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. His family moved to North Carolina when he was ten, where he assisted with farm work and educated his younger siblings. After receiving his education from notable Presbyterian ministers, McCorkle graduated from the College of New Jersey in 1772 and studied theology under his uncle. He became a licensed minister in 1774 and served as a traveling preacher in Virginia before settling as a permanent pastor in Thyatira, North Carolina.
In addition to his pastoral duties, McCorkle was deeply involved in education, serving as president of the Salisbury Academy until its closure in 1791 and later founding Zion-Parnassus, a school focused on classical education. He played a key role in the establishment of a new Salisbury Academy in 1798 but withdrew his support when he believed it strayed from Christian principles. McCorkle is also known for his published sermons, notably "Four Discourses on the General, First Principles of Deism and Revelation" and "Three Discourses on the Terms of Christian Communion." He retired from preaching in 1806 and passed away in 1811 at the age of sixty-four.
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Samuel Eusebius McCorkle
Nonfiction Writer
- Born: August 23, 1746
- Birthplace: Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
- Died: January 21, 1811
- Place of death: North Carolina
Biography
Samuel Eusebius McCorkle, an eighteenth century minister and educator, was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1746. When he was ten years old, his family moved to North Carolina in search of farmland. McCorkle spent his early childhood assisting his father with farm work. As the eldest of ten children, he was also expected to educate his younger siblings. He received his own schooling from the Presbyterian ministers Joseph Alexander and David Caldwell.
In 1772, McCorkle graduated form the College of New Jersey and began studying theology under his maternal uncle, Reverend Joseph Montgomery. In 1774, he was licensed as a Presbyterian minister in New York. After his ordination, he was appointed to be a traveling preacher at the presbyteries of Hanover and Orange in Virginia. After two years in Virginia, McCorkle was installed as a permanent pastor of the Thyatira, North Carolina, presbytery. At this time, he married Margaret Gillespie; the couple had ten children.
While at the presbytery of Thyatira, McCorkle ministered from the pulpit and served as an educator and president of the Salisbury Academy. He remained in his position at the Salisbury Academy until its closing in 1791. He then opened Zion-Parnassus, a school specializing in classical education. McCorkle continued overseeing this school for the next twelve years until a second Salisbury Academy was established in 1798. McCorkle helped plan construction of the new Salisbury Academy and helped design its curriculum and regulations. However, in the early 1800’s he discontinued his support for the school because he felt that the institution had abandoned its Christian principles.
In his later years, McCorkle remained a prominent preacher and educator. He was most noted for his two published sermons titled Four Discourses on the General, First Principles of Deism and Revelation (1797) and Three Discourses on the Terms of Christian Communion (1798). McCorkle retired from the pulpit in 1806. He died five years later at the age of sixty-four.