William Appleton Lawrence
American bishop (1889–1968)
William Appleton Lawrence (May 21, 1889 - December 21, 1968) was the third bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts (1937–57). His father, William Lawrence, was the seventh Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts (1893–1927).
Early life and family
Lawrence was born on May 21, 1889, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the son of the Bishop of Massachusetts William Lawrence and Julia Cunningham. He was the grandson of the notable abolitionist Amos Adams Lawrence and a member of an influential "Boston Brahmin" family, founded by his great-great-grandfather and American revolutionary Samuel Lawrence. His great-grandfather was the noted philanthropist Amos Lawrence. Lawrence's brother, Frederic C. Lawrence, was suffragan bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts (1956–68).
Education and career
Lawrence graduated from Harvard College, as was the tradition in his family. He attended the Union Theological Seminary and the Episcopal Theological Seminary. He also studied at Lawrence College in Appleton, Wisconsin from where he graduated with a Doctor of Divinity in 1929.
Priest
Lawrence was ordained by his father, deacon on June 7, 1914, and priest in 1915.
The public source identifies “William Appleton Lawrence” as american bishop (1889–1968). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around William, Appleton and Lawrence.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “William Appleton Lawrence”, the useful work is to connect “american bishop (1889–1968)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 5, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q8004506. VIAF identifies the subject as 68094077. The Library of Congress control number is n90684874. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1889, 1968, 1937 and 1893.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “William Appleton Lawrence”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow William Appleton Lawrence primary sources, William Appleton Lawrence archive and William research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “William Appleton Lawrence”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “William Appleton Lawrence” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.