Creigh, Thomas, 1808-1880

Thomas Creigh was born the seventh child of Dr. John Creigh and Eleanor Dunbar on September 9, 1808 in Landisburg, Perry County, Pennsylvania. In May 1819, the Creigh family moved to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where Thomas attended the local common school for three years under Henry Wales. He spent two years at the Dickinson Grammar School before enrolling at Dickinson College in the fall of 1824. Creigh graduated from the College on September 28, 1828. Following his graduation, Creigh remainded in Carlisle and studied with Reverend George Duffield to enter the Presbyterian ministry. He attended the Princeton Theological Seminary during the winter of 1829-1830 and was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Carlisle on April 12, 1831. After a series of brief stints at several Pennsylvania congregations, Creigh was elected pastor of the Presbyterian church in Mercersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, on September 27 and ordained on November 17, 1831. In 1853 he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Lafayette College. Interested in advancing women's education, Creigh also served as president of the board of trustees at Wilson College in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, from 1872 until his death. --Archives and Special Collections, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA.