Rev. Joshua Huntington

Born January 31, 1786, Joshua Huntington was the son of a General in the Revolutionary Army and by all accounts lived up to the reputation for benevolence established by his father. Rev. Huntington graduated from Yale in 1804 and like fellow founder Horace Holley, studied theology with Yale’s President, Dr. Dwight.

After considering several different unanimous calls to different churches, Rev. Huntington settled on becoming a colleague of founder Joseph Eckley at Old South in Boston and was ordained there on May 18, 1808. Rev. Eckley died just three years later, leaving Rev. Huntington with a large job at a very young age.

During his tenure at Old South he paid particular attention to the poor of the parish, visiting them more frequently than others. He was President of the Boston Society for the Moral and Religious Instruction of the Poor from its founding in 1816 until his death and was also Secretary of the Boston Foreign Mission Society from it’s formation in 1811.

Between the rigors of ministry and his own frail health, Rev. Huntington himself lived only 34 years. He died on September 11, 1809, only a year after his storied father.