Francis Pharcellus Church (February 22, 1839 – April 11, 1906) was an American publisher and editor. He was a member of the Century Association

Century Association

__notoc__The Century Association is a private club in New York City. It evolved out of an earlier organization – the Sketch Club, founded in 1829 by editor and poet William Cullen Bryant and his friends – and was established in 1847 by Bryant and others as a club to promote interest in...

.

Biography

He was born in Rochester, New York

Rochester, New York

Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...

 and graduated from Columbia College of Columbia University

Columbia College of Columbia University

Columbia College is the oldest undergraduate college at Columbia University, situated on the university's main campus in Morningside Heights in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1754 by the Church of England as King's College, receiving a Royal Charter from King George II...

 in New York City in 1859.

With his brother William Conant Church

William Conant Church

William Conant Church was an American journalist and soldier.Church was born in Rochester, New York, and educated in the Boston Latin School...

 he established The Army and Navy Journal

Armed Forces Journal

Armed Forces Journal is a monthly journal for American military officers and leaders in government and industry.Founded in 1863 as a weekly newspaper, AFJ is published today by Gannett Government Media, part of Gannett Company ....

in 1863, and Galaxy magazine in 1866. He was a lead editorial writer on his brother's newspaper, the New York Sun

New York Sun (historical)

The Sun was a New York newspaper that was published from 1833 until 1950. It was considered a serious paper, like the city's two more successful broadsheets, The New York Times and the New York Herald Tribune...

, and it was in that capacity that in 1897 he wrote his most famous editorial, Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus

Is There a Santa Claus? was the title of an editorial appearing in the September 21, 1897, edition of The New York Sun. The editorial, which included the famous reply "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus", has become an indelible part of popular Christmas folklore in the United States and...

. In this editorial he responds to a young girl's question if there truly is a Santa Claus, writing that he definitely exists and placing himself within Christmas' history forever.

Church died in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, aged 67, and was buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York is the resting place of numerous famous figures, including Washington Irving, whose story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is set in the adjacent Old Dutch Burying Ground. Incorporated in 1849 as Tarrytown Cemetery, it posthumously honored Irving's...

 in Sleepy Hollow, New York

Sleepy Hollow, New York

Sleepy Hollow is a village in the town of Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by the Philipse Manor stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line.Originally...

. He had no children.

External links

• Sleepy Hollow Cemetery
• http://www.bookrags.com/biography/francis-pharcellus-church-dlb/ Biography by BookRags.