Episcopal clergyman, educator, b. Middletown, Conn. He graduated from Columbia College (1851) and the General Theological Seminary in New York City (1854). In 1854 he came to Wisconsin to become a teacher at Nashotah Theological Seminary, and in 1855 was ordained in the priesthood. While teaching at Nashotah he also served as rector at Delafield, where he established St. John's Hall preparatory school. In 1859 St. John's merged with Racine College and DeKoven became president of this institution. With financial support from Nashotah, DeKoven was able to put the school on a stable foundation. For several years the college was utilized as a preparatory school for Nashotah, but later became a self-supporting institution. One of the leaders of the high-church movement, DeKoven made Racine College a prominent example of ritualistic observance. He represented his diocese in the general convention from 1868 until his death, and in the convention utilized his skill as a speaker and debater to fight low-church attempts to dictate ritualistic uniformity. Because of his stand, DeKoven was often attacked in both the church and secular press as a Romanist. In 1874 he was proposed as a candidate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Bishop Jackson Kemper (9.v.), but lost the election due to his failure to command the lay vote. In 1875 he was elected bishop of Illinois, but the general convention refused to accept him because of his high-church views on the Eucharist and he withdrew. He was the author of several religious tracts and a collection of sermons, Sermons Preached on Various Occasions (1880). Dict. Amer. Biog.; F. C. Morehouse, Amer. Churchmen (Milwaukee, 1892); Wis. Mag. Hist., 35; WPA MS.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the James Dekoven Diary for details.

View a related article at Wisconsin Magazine of History Archives.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]