The Rt. Rev. William Bertrand Stevens

Elected coadjutor in 1920 at age 35 and known as “Charlie Chaplin’s bishop” at the Lambeth Conference of the same year, W. Bertrand Stevens was previously rector of St. Mark’s, San Antonio, Texas, and of St. Ann’s, Brooklyn, New York, where he joined in ministry projects with financier J. P. Morgan. He became diocesan in 1928 upon Johnson’s death in office. A distinguished Phi Beta Kappa Scholar, he held a Ph.D. from New York University and held the rank of Major Chaplain in the U.S. Army Reserve. A native of Lewiston, Maine, Bishop Stevens and his wife, Violet, and their four daughters resided in South Pasadena. He saw the diocese through the Great Depression, World War II, and the oppression created by Japanese internment camps, which he vehemently opposed. He was assisted by Bishop Suffragan Robert B. Gooden, elected in 1930. Before his death at Good Samaritan Hospital in 1947 at age 62, Bishop Stevens had become deeply admired by Southern Californians for his down-to-earth ministry and good humor. An avid outdoorsman and dedicated pastor to youth, he is the namesake of Camp Stevens in Julian. He is buried in San Gabriel Cemetery.