Albertus Theodore Briggs

Albertus Theodore Briggs (March 3, 1862 – September 12, 1937) was an American Methodist minister.

Early life and education

He was the second of six children, born in Findlay, Ohio, to William W. Briggs and Sarah B. Briggs. William was a prominent merchant and the postmaster of Geneva, Ohio His father, William H.H. Briggs was raised a farmer but became a carpenter and contractor, serving as an important member of his community. He also enlisted in the Union Army and married Catherine (Harmel) Briggs. His father was Andrew Briggs, a merchant in Rockville, Ohio and a farmer in Hancock County, Ohio. William's grandfather, John Briggs, served in the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.

A.T. Briggs attended the Fort Wayne Methodist College and in 1890 graduated from DePauw University, located in Greencastle, Indiana. At DePauw, he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa. He earned an A.B. (1890), A.M. (1893), and D.D. (1910).

Career

He joined the Northwest Indiana Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1889. He served churches in this conference for 40 years.

He was the first student pastor at Simpson M.E. Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He was also a student pastor at Carpentersville, Indiana and Knightsville, Indiana Briggs was associate pastor at Centenary Church, Terre Haute, Indiana, from 1892 to 1894; Grace Church, Rochester, Indiana, from 1894 to 1896; Kentland, Monticello, Attica, Indiana and LaPorte, Indiana. 1908 to 1914.

He is credited with being the founder of the Maple Avenue Church in Terre Haute. He then served as superintendent for the Hammond District from 1908-1914, living in Valparaiso, Indiana. He served at the West Lafayette, Indiana, Methodist Episcopal Church from 1914 to 1916.

He was Superintendent of the Greencastle District from 1925-1931. He retired in 1931 to give more younger ministers the chance to serve. He still served part-time where needed, including at the Gobin Memorial Church in Greencastle, Indiana.

Briggs was President of the Preachers Aid Society for 12 or 14 years and was active in the Battle Ground Camp Meetings. He was a General Delegate to the 1912 General Conference in Minneapolis.

Personal life

Briggs married Lenore Alleman on June 14, 1890. She earned a Ph B. and an A.M. from DePauw University where she was a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and treasurer of the Y.M.C.A. She served as a high school principal at Waterloo High School (Ohio) in Atwater, Ohio in 1891 and at Celina High School in Celina, Ohio in 1892. They had five daughters; Genevieve, Margaret, Mildred, Ruth, and Mary Briggs, all of whom went to college.

He died at the Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, and his funeral was held at the Gobin Memorial Church in Greencastle.

Briggs and his wife are buried in the Forest Hill Cemetery in Greencastle.

Genealogy

• Albertus Theodore Briggs, son of
  • William W. Briggs (1864–1947), son of
  • William H. H. Briggs (1836–1909), son of
    • Andrew Briggs (1786–1863), son of
    • John Briggs (1736–1802?)