On November 6, 1860, clergyman and educator Adam Empie died.
Born in New York in 1785, Empie attended Union College before his being ordained as an Episcopal minister. He traveled to North Carolina in 1811 after being appointed rector of St. James Church in Wilmington. There he instituted a number of new programs and grew the congregation exponentially.
In 1814, Empie left Wilmington to become a professor and the first chaplain at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He returned to North Carolina a few years later, worked at the same parish and helped to organize the Episcopal Church in North Carolina, before becoming president of the College of William and Mary in 1827. The Williamsburg school grew and prospered during his nearly 10 year tenure.
Empie returned to Wilmington in 1853 due to poor health, but continued working with Episcopal schools in Raleigh and Richmond. He died in 1860 and is buried in Oakdale Cemetery.
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