About Clarence M. Seamans
Clarence M. Seamans (1869–1939)
Clarence Milton Seamans was born on February 8, 1869, in Johnston, Rhode Island, and died July 21, 1939, in Whitman, Massachusetts. He was a direct descendant of Roger Williams, the founder of the Rhode Island Colony. Seamans married Annie May Bennett on October 8, 1890, and they had four children.
Seamans was ordained in the Advent Christian Church and served congregations in Pascoag and River Point, Rhode Island; Dover, New Hampshire; Chelsea, Springfield, and Boston, Massachusetts; and Rutland, Vermont. His final 19 years were spent as pastor in Whitman, Massachusetts. He held administrative roles as secretary of the Massachusetts Advent Christian Conference and of the Marion Campmeeting Association, and he was active in the Alton Bay Campmeeting Association. He contributed numerous articles to the denomination’s periodical, The World’s Crisis, emphasizing the Christian life and the imminent Second Coming, themes reflected in his hymns.
Seamans wrote and composed many hymns and tunes, and served as joint editor of influential hymn collections, including Golden Sheaf (1902) and Carols of Hope (1906). His work demonstrates a devotion to Advent Christian theology and the encouragement of spiritual preparedness among believers.
