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The Stiles Family: A Prominent New England Lineage

The Stiles family ancestry is one of the best-documented in the United States, tracing back to early colonial America. Once among the prominent families of New England, the Stiles name has long been associated with education, religion, and public service.

Beyond its many well-known descendants, the family included several influential figures—none more notable than Dr. Reverend Ezra Stiles, a distinguished clergyman, scholar, and seventh president of Yale College.

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Biography of Dr. Reverend Ezra Stiles 

Ezra Stiles (1727–1795) was an American clergyman, scholar, and educator whose leadership helped shape Yale College during a pivotal era in U.S. history.

Born on November 29, 1727, in North Haven, Connecticut, Ezra was the son of Rev. Isaac Stiles (d. 1760), minister of the local Congregational Church. Ezra graduated from Yale College in 1746 and remained there for several years, serving as a tutor from 1749 to 1755.

After being licensed to preach in 1749, Stiles ministered to Native Americans in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, in 1750. He later studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1753, and practiced in New Haven for two years.

From 1755 to 1777, he served as pastor of the Second Congregational Church in Newport, Rhode Island. During the British occupation of Newport (1776–1777), he relocated his family to Dighton, Massachusetts, before accepting a position as pastor of the North Church in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in 1777.

In 1778, Ezra Stiles became President of Yale College and Professor of Ecclesiastical History. He accepted the post under the condition that no theological statement be required of him other than adherence to the Saybrook Platform of 1708. From 1780 to 1782, he also served as Professor of Divinity, teaching subjects including astronomy and philosophy.

Stiles’s administration revitalized Yale after the American Revolution, strengthening both its academic reputation and secular foundation.

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Achievements and Scholarly Pursuits

As a lifelong scholar, Stiles made notable contributions to science and education:

• Observed the comet of 1759 and the transit of Venus in 1769, leaving behind extensive astronomical notes.

• Conducted electrical experiments with apparatus gifted to Yale by Benjamin Franklin, a close friend.

• Maintained detailed meteorological and thermometric records.

• Imported silkworms and studied silk production.

• Corresponded with leading intellectuals, including Dr. Nathaniel Lardner and Sir William Jones.

• Began studying Hebrew at age forty, becoming a skilled linguist.

He received several honorary degrees, including:

• Master’s Degree from Harvard (1754)

• Doctor of Divinity from the University of Edinburgh (1765, on Franklin’s recommendation)

• Doctor of Divinity from Dartmouth (1780)

• Doctor of Divinity from the College of New Jersey (Princeton University) in 1784

 

Publications and Legacy

Dr. Stiles published numerous works, including:

• A Discourse on the Christian Union (1761) — noted for its progressive theological perspective

• An Account of the Settlement of Bristol, Rhode Island (1785)

• A History of Three of the Judges of King Charles I (1794) — chronicling Major-General Whalley, Major-General Goffe, and Colonel Dixwell

Although he began an Ecclesiastical History of New England and British America in 1768, it remained unfinished. His Literary Diary was later edited by F. B. Dexter and published in New York in three volumes (1901).

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Dr. Ezra Stiles passed away on May 12, 1795, in New Haven, Connecticut. His legacy as a visionary educator and theologian continues to shape the history of Yale University and the broader story of early American intellectual life.

Source: Adapted from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica (Volume 25, Page 920) and The Online Encyclopedia.
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