Samuel Carrick

Samuel Czar Carrick (July 17, 1760 – August 17, 1809)

Early life Carrick was born on July 17, 1760, in Pennsylvania. He received his education in Virginia, and was ordained as a minister when he was 22 years old.

Career In 1790, Carrick helped establish the Lebanon-in-the-Fork Presbyterian Church at the confluence of the Holston and French Broad Rivers. which had been platted as a capital for the Southwest Territory. He and his family moved to the new city shortly afterward.

In December 1792, Carrick began advertising a "seminary" that operated out of his home, where he offered a classical education. On January 12, 1796, Carrick delivered the opening prayer and sermon for the Tennessee Constitutional Convention. The school initially met in a building on the lot now bounded by Gay Street, State Street, Church Avenue, and Clinch Avenue, which had been donated by James White.

Carrick died on August 17, 1809. He was buried in First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Knoxville. East Tennessee College reopened in 1820, 11 years after Carrick's death, under the leadership of David A. Sherman.