Washington Gladden (1836-1918) was a leading American Congregational church pastor and early leader of the Social Gospel movement. He was a leading member of the Progressive Movement, serving for two years as a member of the Columbus and campaigning against Boss Tweed as acting editor of the New York Independent. Gladden was probably the first leading U.S. religious figure to support unionization of the workforce; he also opposed racial segregation. He was a prolific writer, with 40 books to his credit, as well as a number of hymns. He was born in Pottsgrove, Pennsylvania and became a journalist at the age of 16. However, he was keen to become a clergyman studying at the Owego Free Academy and graduated from Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Amongst his works are Plain Thoughts on Being a Christian (1868), Working People and their Employers (1876), Burning Questions (1890) and Who Wrote the Bible? (1891). He is also credited with having written a number of hymns including O Master, Let Me Walk With Thee.
