Robert Appleyard (bishop)


Robert Bracewell Appleyard was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh from 1968 to 1983.

Early Life and Education

Appleyard was born on November 27, 1917 in Jamestown, New York, son of Albert Edward Appleyard and Elizabeth Sharp. He was educated at the Jamestown High School before attending Allegheny College from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1940. He then studied at the Union Theological Seminary, where he earned his Bachelor of Divinity in 1943. He married Katharine Louise Gelbach on September 12, 1942.

Ordained Ministry

Appleyard was ordained a Methodist minister in 1943 and then served as a chaplain in the United States Navy during WWII. In 1945 he became assistant dean of students at Union Theological Seminary and Director of the Program for Returning Serviceman, a post he retained till 1948. He decided to join the Episcopal Church while he was in Brisbane, Australia and was confirmed in New Guinea. He was ordained deacon in June 1946 and priest in January 1947 by the Bishop of Washington Angus Dun. In 1948 he became rector of Christ Church in Watertown, Connecticut, while in 1952 he became rector of Christ Church in Greenwich, Connecticut. Between 1965 and 1968 he served as rector of Bethesda-by-the-Sea in Palm Beach, Florida.

Bishop

On November 14, 1967, Appleyard was elected Coadjutor Bishop of Pittsburgh on the second ballot during a special diocesan convention. He was consecrated bishop on February 10, 1968 by Presiding Bishop John E. Hines in the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St Paul since Trinity Cathedral could not be used due to fire damage from the previous summer. He succeeded as diocesan bishop on September 1, 1968. Throughout his ministry he was prominently involved in the revision of the Book of Common Prayer, the ordination of women to the priesthood, the inclusion of gays and lesbians in the church and the increase of the involvement of lay people in the church. Appleyard retired in 1983 and was succeeded by the conservative Alden Hathaway. After retirement he became Bishop-in-Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Parishes in Europe until 1986. He died of heart failure on October 26, 1999 in Chester, Connecticut.