PERRY, William Stevens, P. E. bishop, born in Providence, Rhode Island, 22 January, 1832. He was graduated at Harvard in 1854. For a time he was at the Virginia theological seminary, but he completed his studies, preparatory for orders, privately in Boston. He was ordained deacon in Grace church, Newton, Massachusetts, 29 March, 1857, by Bishop Eastburn, and priest in St. Paul's church, Boston, 7 April, 1858. He was assistant minister of St. Paul's church, Boston, in 1857-'8, rector of St. Luke's church, Nashua, New Hampshire, in 1858-61, of St. Stephen's church, Portland, Maine, in 1861-'3, of St. Michael's church, Litchfield, Connecticut, in 1864-'9, and of Trinity church, Geneva, New York, in 1869-'76. For a few months in 1876 he was president of Hobart college, Geneva, New York, and he had served previously as professor of history in the same college in 1871-'3. For nearly twenty years he was busily occupied in church work, in addition to his parochial labors. He was deputy to the general convention from New Hampshire in 1859, from the diocese of Maine in 1862, assistant secretary to the house of deputies in 1862, secretary in 1865-'74, was appointed historiographer of the American church in 1868, and, in conjunction with Dr. J. Cotton Smith, edited "The Church Monthly" (Boston, 1864). He received the degree of S. T. D. from Trinity in 1869, and that of LL. D. from William and Mary in 1876. He was elected bishop of Iowa, and consecrated in Trinity church, Geneva, New York, 10 September, 1876. In 1887 he was elected bishop of Nova Scotia, but did not accept. Since his elevation to the episcopate he has continued his labors in the line of church history especially. He has published more books probably than any living clergyman in the Episcopal church. A full list of his writings is furnished in Dr. Batterson's" American Episcopate" (1885). They include " Journals of the General Conventions of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States of America," with illustrative notes, with Dr. Francis L. Hawks (Philadelphia, 1861) ; "Documentary History of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America," with documents relating chiefly to Connecticut, , with the same co-editor (2 vols., New York, 1863-'4); "Historical Collections of the American Colonial Church, , ' including "Virginia" (1871), "Pennsylvania" (1872), "Massachusetts" (1873), "Maryland" (1878), and "Delaware" (1878); "Handbook of the General Convention" (4th ed., 1881) ; "Some Summer Days Abroad" (Davenport, Iowa, 1880) ; "The History of the American Episcopal Church, 1587-1883" (2 vols., Boston, 1885) ; and "Life Lessons from the Book of Proverbs" (4th ed., 1885); numerous sermons preached on special occasions (1864-'85); and twelve episcopal addresses (1877-'88).