James Hervey Otey

James Hervey Otey
Personal details
Born	January 27, 1800 Bedford County, Virginia
Died	April 23, 1863 (aged 63) Memphis, Tennessee
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Davis Pannill
Relations	Mathews family
Profession	Bishop of Tennessee
Religion	Episcopal

James Hervey Otey (January 27, 1800 – April 23, 1863), Christian educator and the first Episcopal Bishop of Tennessee, established the Anglican church in the state and its first parish churches.

James Hervey Otey was born January 27, 1800 in Bedford County, Virginia to Major Isaac Otey and Elizabeth Mathews. Otey attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Upon his graduation in 1820, he was appointed as a tutor in Greek and Latin at the school. Following his marriage to Elizabeth Davis Pannill, daughter of William Pannill and Martha Mitchell of Petersburg, Virginia in 1821, he moved to Maury County, Tennessee and became principal of a boys' school.

On returning to North Carolina to head the academy at Warrenton, Otey was baptized and confirmed in The Episcopal Church. He became a deacon in 1825 and priest in 1827. He then returned to Franklin and organized Tennessee's first Episcopal church there in the Masonic Lodge. He established several other churches and on July 1, 1829, established the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee at Nashville.

He was elected the first bishop in June 1833 and was consecrated at Christ Church, Philadelphia, the following January. Following his election, Otey also took charge of the Diocese of Mississippi and was missionary bishop for Arkansas and the Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). He traveled for months at a time across the extensive region, establishing new churches and preaching the Gospel.

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