Hiram Mattison, an American clergyman, born in Norway, N. Y., Feb. 11, 1811, died in Jersey City, N. J., Nov. 24, 1868. He entered the Methodist ministry in 1835, and in 1836 joined the Black River conference. In 1841 he was appointed agent of the American Bible society for the state of New Jersey. Resuming the pastorate in 1842, he was successively stationed at Watertown and Rome, N. Y. From 1846 to 1860 he was chiefly employed in the preparation of works on astronomy, in lecturing, and in supplying the John street church, New York; but in 1856-'7 he was pastor at Adams and Syracuse, and took a leading part in the anti-slavery movement, in 1859, by correspondence with the Methodists of Great Britain, he obtained the names of about 85,000 petitioners to the general conference of 1860, praying that body to extirpate slavery from the Methodist Episcopal church; and a like paper from 45,000 petitioners in central New York was largely due to his efforts. In November, 1861, he withdrew from the Methodist Episcopal church, because, as he affirmed, of its toleration of slaveholding; and soon after he became pastor of St. John's Independent Methodist church, New York. In 1865 he returned to the former church, and was stationed at Jersey City, where he was prominent in his opposition to the claims of the Roman Catholic church.

This led to his appointment in 1868 as one of the district secretaries of the American and foreign Christian union. Among his works are: " The Trinity and Modern Ari-anism," and "Tracts for the Times" (1843); " Elementary Astronomy, accompanied by Maps" (1846); "Burritt's Geography of the Heavens," edited and revised (1850); "High School Astronomy" (1853); "Spirit Rapping Unveiled" (1854); "Sacred Melodies," and "Impending Crisis " (1859); " Immortality of the Soul," "Resurrection of the Body," and "Defence of American Methodism" (18GG); and "Popular Amusements" (1807).