General Theological Seminary

File:General Theological Seminary 1890 crop.jpg

In May 1817 General Convention, the governing body of the Episcopal Church, met in New York City and passed two resolutions: first, to found a general Episcopal seminary to be supported by the whole church; second, that it be located in New York City. This was emended in 1820 to remove the school to New Haven, Connecticut,{{harvp|Dawley|1969|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA57 57–8]}}. but in 1821 the will of Trinity Church vestry member Jacob Sherred unexpectedly heeded the words of his friend John Pintard{{harvp|Dawley|1969|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA72 72]}}. and directed that his entire fortune of around $60,000 should be paid when:

... there shall be established within the state of New-York, under the direction or by the authority of the General Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, or of the Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the State of New-York, a College, Academy, School, or Seminary, for the education of young men designed for holy orders in the Protestant Episcopal Church.{{harvp|Dawley|1969|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA73 73]}}.

The newly established diocesan school in New York expected to be the beneficiary and Bishop Hobart published his thanks for the gift in the April 4 New York Evening Post, since the General Seminary had already begun its 1820 term in Connecticut.{{harvp|Dawley|1969|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA64 64]}}. A special convocation of the bishops was hastily arranged, however,{{harvp|Dawley|1969|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA74 74–5]}}. and it was agreed to return the school to New York City in order to claim Sherred's grant,{{harvp|Dawley|1969|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA76 76]}}. although the Virginia deputies continued to bemoan that the seminary should be "placed under more favorable auspices for the promotion of what we [believe] to be sound views of the Gospel and the Church than it would be in New York".{{harvp|Dawley|1969|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA77 77]}}. Duncan Cameron mollified them and convinced one to note that "the evil of the undue influence of New York in the General Seminary ... would be chiefly at the beginning, and would be decreasing every year".{{harvp|Dawley|1969|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA77 77–8]}}. With some stipulations concerning its governance, Bishop Hobart consented to the union of the diocesan school with the General Seminary rather than contesting the inheritance.{{harvp|Dawley|1969|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA76 76–7]}}. The unified school opened for the spring term of 1822.{{harvp|Dawley|1969|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA80 80]}}.

Other parishioners of Trinity Church went on to support the once more local institution. Clement Clarke Moore, famous for penning A Visit from St. Nicholas, owned the estate "Chelsea", which included most of what would become the Manhattan neighborhood by that name. Also a member of Trinity Church, he donated 66 tracts of land—which was his apple orchard—to become the site of the new seminary. It was not, however, until 1827 that the seminary occupied that land.[http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1030%3Agts-detailed-history&catid=35&Itemid=52 "A Detailed History of General Seminary"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216042655/http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1030%3Agts-detailed-history&catid=35&Itemid=52 |date=2010-12-16 }} General Theological Seminary. Retrieved July 23, 2011.

Other figures influential in the founding of the seminary include Theodore Dehon, William White, and John Henry Hobart. Bishop Hobart served as the seminary's first dean, after which the Bishop of New York served in this capacity until the 1850s.{{clear left}}

File:GTS Vintage Postcard.jpg

In 1878, Eugene Augustus Hoffman – said to be the richest clergyman in the world due to his extensive real estate holdingsBurrows, p. 1087. – was appointed dean. Under his tenure, the seminary saw tremendous growth, both in student body and facilities. Dean Hoffman's "grand design" was for the seminary's Chelsea campus to be built on an Oxford model, with neo-Gothic buildings facing onto a central quadrangle or Close. Likely Dean Hoffman's most influential addition to the seminary's campus was the Chapel of the Good Shepherd which was begun in 1886, completed two years later, and became known as the "Jewel of Chelsea Square." Its set of 15 tubular bells is the oldest extant in this country, with tubes by John Harrington of Coventry, England; original installation (1888) by Walter Durfee of Providence, Rhode Island; and a modern baton clavier (1983) by Royal Eijsbouts of Asten, Netherlands.Carl Scott Zimmerman, http://www.towerballs.org/data/NYNYGENS.HTM{{Dead link|date=August 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The tower chime is played daily by members of the seminary's Guild of Chimers to call the community to worship. Architect Charles C. Haight designed and supervised construction of most of the buildings on Chelsea Square while Haight's father, Benjamin I. Haight, was the first priest at nearby St. Peter's Episcopal Church.

Due to growing housing needs for married students, GTS acquired 422 West 20th Street, a residential building opposite the seminary's 20th Street gate in March 1957.GTS Community Update of June 6, 2011, sent by Interim President Lang Lowrey to all students, staff, and faculty members by email

File:Chelsea Enclave from south crop.jpg

A renovation and expansion of the seminary's buildings facing 10th Avenue was completed in 2007, when the Desmond Tutu Center opened. Named for Desmond Tutu, former visiting professor at GTS and retired archbishop of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa, the Tutu Center operates primarily as a hotel and conference center.

In 2007 the seminary engaged in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint, along with general operating costs, by converting many of its buildings to geothermal heating and cooling.[http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=44802 "General Seminary begins major environmental initiative, converts to energy-efficient geothermal system"] Web Wire. Retrieved July 23, 2011.[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/19/nyregion/19about.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion "Contemplating Heaven, but Drilling Deep Down"] The New York Times. Retrieved July 23, 2011.

Also in 2007, the seminary, in need of funds, sold Sherrill Hall, a 1960s building along 9th Ave to the Brodsky Organization for the construction of a residential condominium building. The Chelsea Enclave was completed in 2010 and contains 53 residential units as well as retail space, an underground parking garage, and the seminary's new Keller Library. The seminary's main entrance is now located on 21st Street between 9th and 10th Avenues.[http://ny.curbed.com/tags/chelsea-enclave "Chelsea Enclave"] Curbed. Retrieved December 5, 2010.

Still facing financial difficulties, General Theological Seminary engaged in its Plan to Choose Life, a strategic initiative which necessitates the sale of several properties: 422 West 20th Street, the Chelsea 2,3,4 building, and the West Building. Assets from the sales were expected to eliminate the seminary's debt, rebuild its depleted endowment, and restore it to financial solvency.[http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1116:gts-trustees-enact-plan-for-restructuring&catid=68:frontpage-news "GTS Trustees Enact Plan for Restructuring"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324140338/http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1116:gts-trustees-enact-plan-for-restructuring&catid=68:frontpage-news |date=2012-03-24 }} General Theological Seminary. Retrieved July 23, 2011.[http://www.gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1078:gts-next&catid=1:featured "GTS Next: Plan to Choose Life Updates"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926234219/http://www.gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1078:gts-next&catid=1:featured |date=2011-09-26 }} General Theological Seminary. Retrieved July 23, 2011.

In September 2014, eight of the seminary's ten full-time faculty announced their intention to unionize{{cite web |url=http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/seminaries/a_gts_trustee_reflects_on_the.html |title=A GTS Trustee reflects on the crisis at the Seminary |last1=Gerns |first1=Andrew |date=September 29, 2014 |website=EpiscopalCafe.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141005220001/http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/seminaries/a_gts_trustee_reflects_on_the.html |archive-date=2014-10-05 |access-date=2005-10-05 }} and their intention to absent themselves from teaching and worship, alleging harassment and bullying behavior from Dean Kurt Dunkle.{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/02/nyregion/labor-dispute-leaves-professors-jobless.html |title=Seeking Dean's Firing, Seminary Professors End Up Jobless |last1=Otterman |first1=Sharon |date=October 1, 2014 |website=The New York Times |access-date=2005-10-05 }} In a letter to the Board of Trustees on September 17, the eight faculty alleged that Dunkle had repeatedly made racist, sexist, and homophobic remarks; made unprofessional comments about faculty members: compromised the confidentiality of student records; and responded to staff who complained of his behavior by threatening their jobs.

The protesting faculty warned that unless the Board agreed to meet to discuss the allegations, the eight would be obliged to absent themselves from teaching, meetings, and worship.{{cite web |url=http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/seminaries/gts_faculty_respond_with_websi.html |title=Striking GTS faculty launch website concerning their actions |last1=Fontaine |first1=Ann |date=October 5, 2014 |website=EpiscopalCafe.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141005221523/http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/seminaries/gts_faculty_respond_with_websi.html |archive-date=2014-10-05 |access-date=2005-10-05 }} In response, the Board of Trustees of the seminary treated the letter as a mass resignation, which it accepted on September 29.{{cite web |url=http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/seminaries/general_seminary_trustees_rele.html |title=General Seminary trustees release first statement on conflict |last1=Fontaine |first1=Ann |date=September 30, 2014 |website=EpiscopalCafe.com |access-date=2005-10-05 }} The faculty contested this characterization, noting that no resignations were tendered, and published the details of their grievances online, including the original September 17 letter.{{cite web |url=http://www.religionnews.com/2014/09/30/tensions-flare-between-the-episcopal-churchs-oldest-seminary-leadership-and-faculty/ |title=Tensions at Episcopal Church's oldest seminary reflect larger crisis in future of theology schools |last1=Bailey |first1=Sarah |date= September 30, 2014 |website=EpiscopalCafe.com |publisher=Religion News Service |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141005223349/http://www.religionnews.com/2014/09/30/tensions-flare-between-the-episcopal-churchs-oldest-seminary-leadership-and-faculty/ |archive-date=2014-10-05 |access-date=2005-10-05 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.safeseminary.org/how-we-got-here.html |title=How We Got Here |author=Professors Davis, DeChamplain, Good, Hurd, Irving, Kadel, Lamborn, and Malloy |website=SafeSeminary.org |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141005224046/http://www.safeseminary.org/how-we-got-here.html |archive-date=2014-10-05 |access-date=2005-10-05}}

Citing the controversy roiling the seminary, a previously arranged series of lectures by Stanley Hauerwas were canceled when he declined to attend. Around the same time an online petition was established supporting the faculty, with hundreds of co-signers including theologians from all over the country who pledged not to speak at GTS until the terminated faculty were reinstated.{{cite web |url=http://www.religionnews.com/2014/10/08/stanley-hauerwas-drops-general-theological-seminary-lecture-series-controversy/ |title=Stanley Hauerwas drops out of General Theological Seminary lecture series after controversy |last1=Bailey |first1=Pulliam |date=October 8, 2014 |website=Religion News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011094543/http://www.religionnews.com/2014/10/08/stanley-hauerwas-drops-general-theological-seminary-lecture-series-controversy/ |archive-date=2014-10-11 |access-date=2014-10-11 |quote=Theologian Stanley Hauerwas has declined a series of lectures he was scheduled to give at New York's General Theological Seminary in November in the wake of the crisis roiling the school. ... Some 900 scholars from across the country have signed a letter of support for the eight faculty, saying they will not lecture or speak at the seminary. Noteworthy scholars who signed the letter include James H. Cone of Union Theological Seminary, Gary Dorrien of Union Theological Seminary and Francis Schüssler Fiorenza of Harvard Divinity School.}}

During the COVID-19 pandemic, like most other institutions of higher learning, GTS pivoted to virtual learning for the first time in its history. In 2021, the Board of Trustees authorized the seminary to launch a fully hybrid MDiv program, which welcomed its first cohort of students in 2022, and in 2023 replaced the residential program entirely.{{Cite web |title=General to begin hybrid programs Fall 2022 |url=https://www.gts.edu/seminary-news/hybridprograms |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=General Theological Seminary |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Walton |first=Jeffrey |date=2023-03-01 |title=Episcopal Church General Seminary on the Ropes |url=https://juicyecumenism.com/2023/03/01/general-seminary/ |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=Juicy Ecumenism |language=en-US}}

At the same time, under the leadership of Acting Dean and President Michael W. DeLashmutt, the Seminary Board entered into a formal process, aimed at assessing the Seminary's long-term financial and operational model. In 2022, a formal affiliation agreement was made between General Theological Seminary and Virginia Theological Seminary. While remaining separate institutions, the two seminaries now share a common leadership structure and support services.{{Cite web |date=2023-02-09 |title=The General Theological Seminary Sets Out its Plans for the Future {{!}} Virginia Theological Seminary |url=https://vts.edu/press-release/the-general-theological-seminary-sets-out-its-plans-for-the-future/ |access-date=2024-03-17 |language=en-US}} Although the affiliation was not characterized as a merger, 32 out of 40 members of the joint GTS/VTS board were from VTS, and the VTS president became the GTS president.{{Cite web |last=Petersen |first=Kirk |date=2022-12-07 |title=Partnership Ensures Survival of a Smaller GTS |url=https://livingchurch.org/news/partnership-ensures-survival-of-a-smaller-gts/ |access-date=2024-11-11 |website=The Living Church |language=en-US}}

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On September 6, 2024, Vanderbilt University entered into a lease agreement to occupy the seminary campus pending approval from the government authorities. Vanderbilt made it clear that General Theological Seminary would continue to occupy some space on the Chelsea campus, but would remain a separate entity.{{cite web |last=Hitson |first=Hadley |date=September 26, 2024 |title=Vanderbilt takes over New York seminary for nationwide expansion |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/money/2024/09/26/tennessee-vanderbilt-new-york-seminary-nationwide-expansion/75397323007/ |access-date=September 30, 2024 |website=The Tennessean}} GTS had previously sought to lease the campus to a Catholic-affiliated music school, but dropped the plan following opposition from local bishops, who expressed concern about "the lack of full acceptance of the LGBTQ stance of [the school's] founders."{{Cite web |last=Paulsen |first=David |date=2024-04-11 |title=Bishops oppose General Seminary’s long-term lease with choral music school over LGBTQ+ inclusion concerns |url=https://episcopalnewsservice.org/2024/04/11/bishops-oppose-general-seminarys-long-term-lease-with-choral-music-school-over-lgbtq-inclusion-concerns/ |access-date=2024-11-11 |website=Episcopal News Service |language=en-US}}

The seminary has been accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada since 1938.{{cite web |title=Membership List |url=http://www.ats.edu/Resources/PublicationsPresentations/Documents/Bulletin/Part2MembershipList.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405094623/http://www.ats.edu/Resources/PublicationsPresentations/Documents/Bulletin/Part2MembershipList.pdf |archive-date=April 5, 2012 |access-date=October 26, 2011 |publisher=Association of Theological Schools}} As of 2024, GTS offered a hybrid Master of Divinity program, which prepares persons for ordination, primarily in the Episcopal Church.{{Cite web |title=Overview |url=https://www.gts.edu/overview-1 |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=General Theological Seminary |language=en-US}}

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Since 1880, the General Theological Seminary has hosted the annual Paddock Lectures which were founded by benefactor George A. Jarvis and named in honor of Benjamin Henry Paddock who was a member of the Class of 1852 and later Bishop of Massachusetts. The lectures have featured leading theologians including Francis Joseph Hall, Diogenes Allen, William Temple, and Rowan Williams.[http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=917&catid=2:press-releases&Itemid=188 "Larry Hurtado is 2004 Paddock Lecturer at General Seminary"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330120624/http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=917&catid=2:press-releases&Itemid=188 |date=2012-03-30 }}, General Theological Seminary. Retrieved October 26, 2011.

The library of the General Theological Seminary has been known as the St. Mark's Library since the 1960s. In 2011, the library moved into a new facility on the east side of the Close, on the site of the former Sherrill Hall. In October 2011, the building was dedicated as the Christoph Keller, Jr. Library, to honor the tenth Bishop of Arkansas.{{Cite web |title=The Seminary Library - General Theological Seminary - Acalog ACMS™ |url=http://catalog.gts.edu/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=75 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107125243/http://catalog.gts.edu/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=75 |archive-date=2014-01-07 |access-date=2012-07-31}}

According to Niels Henry Sonne, "The Library of The General Theological Seminary is a magnificent treasury of books, manuscripts, records and source materials for the study of the life and thought of Christianity."Sonne, p.3. The library's first donation was by John Pintard in 1820 and, within a year, the library had grown to over 2,500 volumes. J. H. Feltus was the first librarian and, in 1834, the Friends of the Library association was formed and their endowment is still productive today. Under the direction of Eugene Augustus Hoffman, who became dean in 1879, the library was classified and catalogued using modern systems and Hobart Hall was built to house the collection. Hoffman also bought the Walter A. Copinger collection of Latin Bibles and made other significant purchases.Sonne, p.6

The library has a collection of ancient Bibles and English Bibles. The Ancient Bible Collection includes a Hebrew Bible from 1264, in which the comment was so written as to form decorative pictures. It also includes three tenth-century Gospels, one decorated with colored miniatures, and a complete Latin Bible from about 1250. In 2024, GTS announced that it would move 6,500 rare books and 13 archival collections from the GTS Keller Library (which is closed for most of the year) to the VTS campus library (which is more convenient for scholars).{{Cite web |last=Burridge |first=Nicky |date=2024-04-05 |title=General Theological Seminary library to move rare book collection to VTS |url=https://anglican.ink/2024/04/05/general-theological-seminary-library-to-move-rare-book-collection-to-vts/ |access-date=2024-11-11 |website=Anglican Ink © 2024 |language=en-US}}

GTS owned a Gutenberg Bible from 1898 to 1978, when it sold the book for $2.2 million to the Württembergische Landesbibliothek in Stuttgart, Germany.{{Cite news |last=Reif |first=Rita |date=1978-04-08 |title=Gutenberg Bought at Auction for $2 Million for Stuttgart Library |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/08/archives/new-jersey-pages-gutenberg-bought-at-auction-for-2-million-for.html |access-date=2024-11-11 |work=The New York Times}} One of the pages of this copy was found to have been forged and was replaced with another page from another incomplete Gutenberg Bible, making this the first incomplete Gutenberg Bible to be made whole again.St. Mark's Library (General Theological Seminary). The Gutenberg Bible of the General Theological Seminary. New York: St. Mark's Library, the General Theological Seminary, 1963. Pages 4–5.

Located on the west side of Manhattan in New York City, the General Theological Seminary sits in the heart of Chelsea, a largely residential area with a large gay population that is known as a center of the New York art world, with over 200 galleries in the neighborhood.{{cite web |url=http://manhattan.about.com/od/neighborhoodguide/p/chelseaprofile.htm |title=Chelsea Neighborhood Profile |publisher=About.com |access-date=November 3, 2011 |archive-date=April 3, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403081921/http://manhattan.about.com/od/neighborhoodguide/p/chelseaprofile.htm |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|url=http://www.nyc.com/visitor_guide/chelsea.75816/editorial_review.aspx |title=Chelsea |publisher=NYC.com |access-date=November 3, 2011}} Chelsea Square, the block between 9th and 10th Avenues and 20th and 21st Streets on which the seminary sits, is at the center of the Chelsea Historic District,[http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/maps/chelsea.pdf "Chelsea Historic District"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629165409/http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/maps/chelsea.pdf |date=2011-06-29 }} City of New York. Retrieved July 23, 2011. which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[https://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp "Chelsea Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places"] National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved July 23, 2011. The seminary is frequently noted for the beauty of the gardens on its campus, called the Close,[http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=761&Itemid=137 "Chelsea Square Conservancy"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110624173836/http://www.gts.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=761&Itemid=137 |date=2011-06-24 }} General Theological Seminary. Retrieved July 23, 2011.[http://www.letsgo.com/10855-usa-travel-guides-new_york_city-sights_and_activities-manhattan-chelsea-c "Chelsea, NYC Travel Guide"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100314153220/http://www.letsgo.com/10855-usa-travel-guides-new_york_city-sights_and_activities-manhattan-chelsea-c |date=2010-03-14 }} Let's Go. Retrieved July 23, 2011. an English term used to refer to a private piece of enclosed property and often associated with cathedrals.{{cite web |url= http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/close |title= Close |publisher= Dictionary.com |access-date=November 3, 2011}}{{cite web|url=http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/history.php |title=Map of the Close |publisher=Salisbury Cathedral |access-date=November 3, 2011}} The seminary's Close is characterized by a row of neo-Gothic buildings along 21st Street and tree-shaded lawns uncharacteristic of its urban setting.Berner, p. 141–143.

File:GTS Chapel Interior.jpg

Worship is at the center of seminary life and the community gathers several times throughout the day for worship in the centrally located Chapel of the Good Shepherd.

{{Main|List of General Theological Seminary people}}

{{hatnote|See also: :Category:General Theological Seminary alumni.}}

Because it has formed many of the church's clergy, GTS has maintained a considerable influence on the life of the church.[https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1916/09/30/100222620.pdf "Fosbroke to head General Seminary: One of the most influential offices in the Protestant Episcopal Church in America"] The New York Times. Retrieved August 5, 2011.

Notable former professors include J. Robert Wright the St. Mark's in the Bowery Professor of Ecclesiastical History and David Hurd the Professor of Church Music and Organist of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd.{{cite web |url=http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_workforce&view=department&id=9&Itemid=108 |title=GTS Faculty |publisher=General Theological Seminary |access-date=November 2, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111118133605/http://gts.edu/index.php?option=com_workforce&view=department&id=9&Itemid=108 |archive-date=2011-11-18 |url-status=dead }}

Notable alumni include:

• James Lloyd Breck, a co-founder of Nashotah House and the founder of Seabury Divinity School[http://anglicanhistory.org/usa/jlbreck/letters/01.html "Project Canterbury: The Life of The Rev. James Lloyd Breck"] Anglican History. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
• Jeannette Piccard, one of the "Philadelphia Eleven" who were the first women to be ordained in the Episcopal Church[https://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/19/obituaries/rev-jeannette-piccard-dies-at-86-scientist-entered-seminary-in-70.html "Rev. Jeannette Piccard dies at 86; Scientist Entered Seminary in '70"] The New York Times. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
• Gene Robinson, ninth Bishop of New Hampshire and first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church[https://web.archive.org/web/20121029150828/http://www.nhepiscopal.org/images/stories/Biography___updated1.pdf "Diocese of New Hampshire Official Biography of Bishop Robinson"] Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
• Frank T. Griswold, 25th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church from 1998 to 2006.[http://archive.episcopalchurch.org/pb25_1271_ENG_HTM.htm "Bishop Frank T. Griswold"] The Episcopal Church. Retrieved March 10, 2014.

Many other notable figures, including a number of bishops, have graduated from the seminary.

Because of its proximity to film studios in New York City and its collection of neo-Gothic buildings, GTS has appeared in multiple television shows to portray a number of schools and universities. Only a block from the Chelsea Piers, where Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent were filmed and where Law & Order: SVU and The Blacklist are currently filmed, the seminary's Close has frequently appeared in those shows as a stand-in for several schools whose campuses are not as accessible and most frequently as the fictitious Hudson University.[http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/locations/sets_law_and_order.shtml "Law & Order: Sets in the City"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061215090113/http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/locations/sets_law_and_order.shtml |date=2006-12-15 }} City of New York. Retrieved August 7, 2011.[http://www.screentours.com/law-and-order-new-york-city "Exploring Law & Order's famous NYC TV locations"] Screen Tours. Retrieved August 7, 2011.

File:Chapel Tower at GTS.jpg|Chapel tower

File:Good Shepherd at GTS.jpg|Statue of Christ the Good Shepherd in the chapel

File:Chapel Doors.jpg|Doors of The Chapel of the Good Shepherd

File:CoE Gen Theol Cem 20st jeh.JPG|The Chapel of the Good Shepherd from 20th Street

File:General Theological Seminary Chapel of the Good Shepherd.jpg|General Theological Seminary Chapel of the Good Shepherd

File:Refectory East Side.jpg|Interior of the Hoffman Refectory

File:General Theological Seminary Desmond Tutu Center.jpg|The Desmond Tutu Center on 10th Avenue

File:General Theological Seminary quad.jpg|The east end of the Close viewed from 20th Street

File:General Theological Seminary buildings on West 20th St.jpg|Chelsea 2,3,4 Building sold for development

File:Enclave from Close.jpg|The Keller Library is on the ground floor of the Enclave building

• {{Portal-inline|Christianity}}

Notes

{{Reflist}}

Bibliography

• Berner, Nancy and Lowry, Susan. Garden Guide: New York City. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2002. {{ISBN|1-892145-20-0}}
• Boggs, Timothy A, Bruce Parker, and Sam Waterson. Through the Gates into the City: a Metropolis, a Seminary, and a Chapel. New York: The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church, 2007.
• Burrows, Edwin G, and Mike Wallace. Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. {{ISBN|0-19-511634-8}}
• {{citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O4BKAwAAQBAJ |title=The Story of the General Theological Seminary: A Sesquicentennial History, 1817–1967 |last=Dawley |first=Powel Mills |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |date=1969 |isbn=9781579103064 }}.
• Sonne, Niels H. America's Oldest Episcopal Seminary Library and the Needs It Serves. New York?: General Theological Seminary, 1953.
• St. Mark's Library (General Theological Seminary). The Gutenberg Bible of the General Theological Seminary. New York: St. Mark's Library, the General Theological Seminary, 1963.

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• [http://www.gts.edu Official website]
• {{Cite Collier's|wstitle=General Theological Seminary |short=x}}

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