Hicks, Elias, 1748-1830

Elias Hicks (1748-1830) was an eminent Quaker minister from Jericho, Long Island, N.Y. He was a farmer, partner in a tannery, and had a knowledge of surveying. In 1771, he married Jemima Seaman, daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Willis) Seaman. Hicks was recognized as a minister in 1779 and during the next fifty years, made sixty-three visits as a traveling Friend to meetings in the United States. In the 1820s, a religious controversy within the Society of Friends which focused on Hicks' ministry led to the so-called Hicksite-Orthodox Separation of 1827-1828.

Long Island farmer whose beliefs led to the Hicksite-Orthodox Separation in the Religious Society of Friends in America.

Elias Hicks was an eminent Quaker minister from Jericho, Long Island, N.Y. He was a farmer, partner in a tannery, and had a knowledge of surveying. In 1771, he married Jemima Seaman, daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth Seaman. Beginning in 1776, Hicks served on a committee that visited Friends' homes and urged members of Westbury Monthly Meeting to manumit any slaves they owned. He was recognized as a minister in 1779 and during the next fifty years, made sixty-three visits as a traveling Friend to meetings in the United States. In the 1820s, a religious controversy within the Society of Friends which focused on Hicks' ministry led to the so-called Hicksite Separation of 1827 and 1828.