Individual Details
Phineas Franklin Bresee D.D.
(31 Dec 1838 - 13 Nov 1915)
Bresee was born on a farm near Franklin, New York, and raised there and in nearby Davenport. He was converted to Christianity in the Methodist Episcopal Church in Davenport in 1856 and delivered his first sermon later that year. He helped his family move to Iowa in 1857 and entered the Methodist Episcopal ministry in Iowa soon afterward. In 1860 he married Maria Hebbard, his sweetheart from back in New York.
He was a pastor in Iowa from 1857 until 1883, serving various charges including East Des Moines, Chariton, Wesley Chapel (Des Moines), Broadway Church in Council Bluffs, Red Oak, and Creston. He also served a term as a presiding elder (now district superintendent) and was a delegate to 1872 General Conference of the M. E. Church, held at Brooklyn, New York. In August 1883 he relocated his large extended family (which included six children, his parents, and a nephew) to the West Coast in a box car which took six days. He was appointed to Fort Street Methodist Church (now First United Methodist Church) in Los Angeles, California, then to Pasadena First, and later to Simpson Tabernacle (L.A.), Asbury M. E. Church (L.A.) and Boyle Heights (also in L. A.). In California, he also served as a presiding elder of the Los Angeles District and as a delegate to the 1892 General Conference of his church. He had also chaired the committee that recommended Simpson College become a four–year college, raised the money for buildings there, like College Hall, now "the college’s primary historic landmark," and served on the their board of trustees for 16 years, part of that time as board president. In Los Angeles, he was a trustee for the University of Southern California and worked with J. P. Widney to save the College of Liberal Arts there.[1]
Further reading:
Bangs, Carl (1995). Phineas F. Bresee: His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene. (ISBN 0-8341-1621-9)
Brickley, Donald P. (1960) Man of the Morning: The Life and Works of Phineas F. Bresee. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House [1]
Corbett, C.T. (1958) Our Pioneer Nazarenes. Kansas City, MO.: Nazarene Publishing House. [2]
Girvin, E.A. (1916). Phineas F. Bresee: A Prince in Israel. Kansas City, MO: Pentecostal Nazarene Publishing House. [3]
Hills, A. M. Phineas F. Bresee -- A Life Sketch. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [4]
Moore, Emily Bush. (1973) Phineas F. Bresee: Mr. Nazarene. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [5]
Smith, Timothy L. (1962) Called Unto Holiness: The Story of the Nazarenes: The . Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [6]
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bresee
1900 census shows him living in Los Angeles, CA.
1883 August 17th left Council Bluffs, Iowa, with his family for Los Angeles, California arrived August 26th, this was an 8 day journey in a box car. See page 125 of Dr. Bangs book and pages 78-79 in "A Prince in Israel".
1870 census for E. Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa shows PF Bresee age 31 (born 1838) living with his wife Maria E. age 33, Ernest H. age 8, Phineas W. age 4 and Bertha. His father, Phineas Philips Bresee is living near by.
1860 census: they should be in Iowa as of 1857 but cannot locate the family in the census. July 1860 marriage location is per Dr. Bangs' book.
1857 the family moved to Iowa in the summer per Dr. Bangs' book.
1840 census for Franklin, Delaware Co., NY, shows a Phineas Bressee age 20-30 living with a female age 20-30 and a son age under 5 (this would be son Phineas F. Bresee) and a female age under 5 (this would be daughter Diantha Bresee). Living only three persons away is Phineas Philips and his family.
1838 birth date is from his death certificate and is confirmed in Grivin's book "Prince of Israel".
Email dated 19 April 2015 to czachary, Jane
Claude:
Thank you for the return call. Sorry I missed it but I did get the message you left.
You being the head archivist for USC, you may be able to help me with my family history. Phineas F. Bresee, my great grandfather, was a Methodist minister in Los Angeles during the period of 1883 to 1895. My research shows he was elected to the Board of Directors, USC on December 12, 1883. At that time the Board of Trustees was not yet created. In January 1892 he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Liberal Arts,USC. In July 1895 he resigned his responsibilities at USC and in the Methodist Church so that he could be free to take a different direction with his religious beliefs.
Shortly thereafter he formed the Church of the Nazarene on south Main St., Los Angeles.
My desire is to confirm the facts above and determine his campus responsibilities and contributions.
I have counted 8 USC graduates in my family including myself and my sister, who I have CC'd on this email. An additional family member will be on the campus next fall.
Mel Bresee
mel.bresee@gmail.com
He was a pastor in Iowa from 1857 until 1883, serving various charges including East Des Moines, Chariton, Wesley Chapel (Des Moines), Broadway Church in Council Bluffs, Red Oak, and Creston. He also served a term as a presiding elder (now district superintendent) and was a delegate to 1872 General Conference of the M. E. Church, held at Brooklyn, New York. In August 1883 he relocated his large extended family (which included six children, his parents, and a nephew) to the West Coast in a box car which took six days. He was appointed to Fort Street Methodist Church (now First United Methodist Church) in Los Angeles, California, then to Pasadena First, and later to Simpson Tabernacle (L.A.), Asbury M. E. Church (L.A.) and Boyle Heights (also in L. A.). In California, he also served as a presiding elder of the Los Angeles District and as a delegate to the 1892 General Conference of his church. He had also chaired the committee that recommended Simpson College become a four–year college, raised the money for buildings there, like College Hall, now "the college’s primary historic landmark," and served on the their board of trustees for 16 years, part of that time as board president. In Los Angeles, he was a trustee for the University of Southern California and worked with J. P. Widney to save the College of Liberal Arts there.[1]
Further reading:
Bangs, Carl (1995). Phineas F. Bresee: His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene. (ISBN 0-8341-1621-9)
Brickley, Donald P. (1960) Man of the Morning: The Life and Works of Phineas F. Bresee. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House [1]
Corbett, C.T. (1958) Our Pioneer Nazarenes. Kansas City, MO.: Nazarene Publishing House. [2]
Girvin, E.A. (1916). Phineas F. Bresee: A Prince in Israel. Kansas City, MO: Pentecostal Nazarene Publishing House. [3]
Hills, A. M. Phineas F. Bresee -- A Life Sketch. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [4]
Moore, Emily Bush. (1973) Phineas F. Bresee: Mr. Nazarene. Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [5]
Smith, Timothy L. (1962) Called Unto Holiness: The Story of the Nazarenes: The . Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House. [6]
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bresee
1900 census shows him living in Los Angeles, CA.
1883 August 17th left Council Bluffs, Iowa, with his family for Los Angeles, California arrived August 26th, this was an 8 day journey in a box car. See page 125 of Dr. Bangs book and pages 78-79 in "A Prince in Israel".
1870 census for E. Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa shows PF Bresee age 31 (born 1838) living with his wife Maria E. age 33, Ernest H. age 8, Phineas W. age 4 and Bertha. His father, Phineas Philips Bresee is living near by.
1860 census: they should be in Iowa as of 1857 but cannot locate the family in the census. July 1860 marriage location is per Dr. Bangs' book.
1857 the family moved to Iowa in the summer per Dr. Bangs' book.
1840 census for Franklin, Delaware Co., NY, shows a Phineas Bressee age 20-30 living with a female age 20-30 and a son age under 5 (this would be son Phineas F. Bresee) and a female age under 5 (this would be daughter Diantha Bresee). Living only three persons away is Phineas Philips and his family.
1838 birth date is from his death certificate and is confirmed in Grivin's book "Prince of Israel".
Email dated 19 April 2015 to czachary, Jane
Claude:
Thank you for the return call. Sorry I missed it but I did get the message you left.
You being the head archivist for USC, you may be able to help me with my family history. Phineas F. Bresee, my great grandfather, was a Methodist minister in Los Angeles during the period of 1883 to 1895. My research shows he was elected to the Board of Directors, USC on December 12, 1883. At that time the Board of Trustees was not yet created. In January 1892 he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Liberal Arts,USC. In July 1895 he resigned his responsibilities at USC and in the Methodist Church so that he could be free to take a different direction with his religious beliefs.
Shortly thereafter he formed the Church of the Nazarene on south Main St., Los Angeles.
My desire is to confirm the facts above and determine his campus responsibilities and contributions.
I have counted 8 USC graduates in my family including myself and my sister, who I have CC'd on this email. An additional family member will be on the campus next fall.
Mel Bresee
mel.bresee@gmail.com
Events
| Birth | 31 Dec 1838 | in a log cabin, Ouleout Valley near Franklin, Delaware Co., NY |  |  | |
| Census | 1840 | Franklin, Delaware, New York, United States | | ||
| Education | 1854 - 1855 | attended Delaware Literary Institure, Franklin, Delaware, New York, United States | | ||
| Religion | 1854 | joined the Methodist Church - Davenport, Delaware, New York, United States | | ||
| Occupation | Sep 1857 | the annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Des Moines, Iowa, United States | | ||
| Marriage | 31 Jul 1860 | the Hebbard home, Davenport, Delaware, New York, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | | |
| Residence (family) | 1864 | Des Moines, Polk, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Census (family) | 1870 | E. Des Moines, Polk, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Residence (family) | 1872 | Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Residence (family) | 1873 | Red Oak, Pottawattamie, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Residence (family) | 1876 | Clarinda, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Census (family) | 1880 | Creston, Union, Iowa, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Residence | 26 Aug 1883 | (family moved in a railroad box car from Council Bluffs) - Los Angeles Co., California, United States | | | |
| Election | 12 Dec 1883 | member of the board of directors of USC and served continuouly to July 1895 - Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States | | | |
| Election | Jan 1892 | chairman of the board of the College of Liberal Arts, University of Southern California - Los Angeles, California, United States | | ||
| Fact 1 | 9 Jul 1895 | attended his last University of Southern California board meeting - Los Angeles, California, United States | | ||
| Occupation | 6 Oct 1895 | minister for the first meeting of the Ch. of the Nazarene - Red Men's Hall, 317 South Main St., Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States | | | |
| Census (family) | 1900 | Main St., Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Census (family) | 1910 | 1126 Santee St., Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States - Maria Elma Hebbard | | ||
| Death | 13 Nov 1915 | 1126 Santee St., Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States | | | |
| Burial | 16 Nov 1915 | the Bresee plot in Evergreen Cemetery, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States | |||
| LDS Family Tree ID | L8BM-XV4 | ||||
| WikiTree | Bresee-14 |
Families
| Spouse | Maria Elma Hebbard (1836 - 1920) |
| Child | Ernest Hebbard "EH" Bresee (1861 - 1949) |
| Child | Lily Bresee (1864 - 1865) |
| Child | Phineas Wright "PW" Bresee (1865 - 1936) |
| Child | Bertha M. Bresee (1868 - 1956) |
| Child | Dr. Paul Horace Bresee MD (1871 - 1959) |
| Child | Dr. Melvin Arthur "MA" Bresee Md (1872 - 1942) |
| Child | Susan E. Bresee (1874 - 1946) |
| Father | Phineas Philips Bresee (1812 - 1895) |
| Mother | Susan Brown (1812 - 1902) |
| Sibling | Diantha Bresee (1836 - 1873) |
| Sibling | Reed Bresee (1841 - 1842) |
Notes
Birth
1838 birth date is from his death certificate and is confirmed in Grivin's book "Prince of Israel".See "Phineas Bresee, his life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement, and the Church of the Nazarene" by Dr. Carl Bangs page 17: "From county land records and other evidences, it is estimated that the log cabin stood on 12 acres that Phineas Philips Bresee purchased in late 1834 from Reynold Lawton and Adah, his wife, as part of Great Lot 32 of the Whiteborough Paten, about three miles east of Franklin village. The same autumn, P. P. Bresee purchased another 24 acres two or three miles west, in Great Lot 12. Since that is near or at the place where the family moved in 1850, Bresee's birthplace was most likely in Great Lot 32."
Census
1840 census for Franklin, Delaware Co., NY, shows a Phineas Bressee (his father) age 20-30 living with a female age 20-30 and a son age under 5 (this would be him, Phineas F. Bresee age 2) and a female age under 5 (this would be his sister Diantha Bresee). Living only three persons away is Phineas Philips and his family, the man that raised Phineas Philips Bresee.Occupation
"on trial" minister, as admitted to the conference being the first step in becoming a Methodlist ministerSource: page 58 "Phineas Bresee, his life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement, and the Church of the Nazarene" by Carl Bangs.
Marriage
July 1860 marriage location is per Dr. Bangs' book.Census (family)
1870 census for E. Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa shows PF Bresee age 31 (born 1838) living with his wife Maria E. age 33, Ernest H. age 8, Phineas W. age 4 and Bertha. His father, Phineas Philips Bresee is living near by.Page 14 of "Phineas F. Bresee - A Life Sketch" by Aaron Merritt Hills: In the fall of 1870, they were sent to Council Bluffs, on the Missouri River. It was an eventful pastorate lasting three years. But it was a very difficult field. The church building was new, commodious, and well-appointed. But when the Mormons were driven out of Nauvoo,
Illinois, they stopped at Council Bluffs and made it their headquarters. That unhallowed institution put its blighting curse upon the town -- and it became famous over the entire country for drunkenness, gambling, and impurity.
Census (family)
1880 census for P.P. Brisee includes son P.S. Brisee age 41 and Mariah E. Brisee his wife age 43 and the remaining family member of P.P. BreseeResidence
in Los Angeles, after "camping" in a freight car, arriving So. Pacific RR depot, from an eight day trip from Council Bluffs, Iowa,1883 August 17th left Council Bluffs, Iowa, with his family for Los Angeles, California arrived August 26th. This was an 8 day journey in a rail road box car referred to as camping during the trip. See page 125 of Dr. Bangs book.
Page 16 of "Phineas F. Bresee - A Life Sketch" by Aaron Merritt Hills: He, PFB, wrote to Bishop Hurst, who had more lately presided over the conference of Southern
California, who decidedly advised him to transfer to Los Angeles. Meantime officials of the Union Pacific Railroad furnished him a special car (a box car) for him and his family and all his belongings. On Saturday afternoon, August 26, 1883, Dr. Bresee and his family reached Los Angeles
and were conducted to the home prepared for them. Sunday morning he was conducted to the First Methodist church, where by previous arrangement he preached. The next Sunday morning he preached for the newly organized
University Methodist Episcopal church.
Election
Source "Man of the Morning" by Donald P. Brickley, pages 192 and 197. Served continuously on the Board of Directors of the University of Southern California and was one of the first members of the Board of Regents until July 1895 when resigned to start the new church.Occupation
Source: page 195 "Phineas Bresee, his life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement, and the Church of the Nazarene" by Carl Bangs.Census (family)
1900 census shows her born 15 Nov. 1836, in New York, with her father born in New York and her mother born in Conn. The family was living on Main St., Los Angeles, CA. at the time.As of 1899 the family was living in the home of Dr. Paul Bresee including daughter Sue per Stan Ingersol, Ph.D., Archivist, Nazarene Church wrote in his column dated 9 Sept. 2013, history of Glidden family.
Census (family)
1910 census shows the family was living on Santee St., Los Angeles at the time.Death
Bresee Bros. shown as the undertaker.Endnotes
1. Carl Bangs, Phineas F. Bresee, His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene (Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City 1995), page 17.
2. Rev. E. A. Girvin, Phineas F. Bresee: A Prince in Israel, second printing, november 1981 (Kansas City, Missouri: Nazarene Publishing House, 1916 copyright), page 23.
3. John H. Keatley, History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, my e-books (Lakeside Building, Chicago, IL: O. L. Baskin & Co., Historical Publishers, 1883), page 8.
4. Donld P. Brickley, Man of the Morning (Kansas City, Missouri: Nazarene Publishing House, 1960), page 53.
5. John H. Keatley, History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, my e-books (Lakeside Building, Chicago, IL: O. L. Baskin & Co., Historical Publishers, 1883), page 9.
6. Carl Bangs, Phineas F. Bresee, His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene (Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City 1995), page 38.
7. , , ; Membership approved 5 July 1923 The Society of the Sons of the Revolution, California Chapter, Glendale library, phone 818/240-1775, 600 S. Glendale Ave., Glendale, CA 91204.
8. John H. Keatley, History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, my e-books (Lakeside Building, Chicago, IL: O. L. Baskin & Co., Historical Publishers, 1883), page 9.
9. John H. Keatley, History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, my e-books (Lakeside Building, Chicago, IL: O. L. Baskin & Co., Historical Publishers, 1883), page 8.
10. John H. Keatley, History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, my e-books (Lakeside Building, Chicago, IL: O. L. Baskin & Co., Historical Publishers, 1883), page 8.
11. Aaron Merritt Hills, Phineas F. Bresee - A Life sketch, Digital Publication Copyright 1997 Holiness Data Ministry (Kansas City, Mo.: Nazarene Publishing House, 1997), page 15; [printed book: no date - no copyright], ( : accessed .
12. Aaron Merritt Hills, Phineas F. Bresee - A Life sketch, Digital Publication Copyright 1997 Holiness Data Ministry (Kansas City, Mo.: Nazarene Publishing House, 1997), page 15; [printed book: no date - no copyright], ( : accessed .
13. Carl Bangs, Phineas F. Bresee, His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene (Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City 1995), page 125.
14. Donld P. Brickley, Man of the Morning (Kansas City, Missouri: Nazarene Publishing House, 1960), pages 192 & 197.
15. Donld P. Brickley, Man of the Morning (Kansas City, Missouri: Nazarene Publishing House, 1960), page 197.
16. Donld P. Brickley, Man of the Morning (Kansas City, Missouri: Nazarene Publishing House, 1960), page 203.
17. Carl Bangs, Phineas F. Bresee, His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement and the Church of the Nazarene (Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City 1995), page 195.
18. County of Los Angeles, Death Certificate.