The historic parish of St. Paul’s, Norwalk,
Connecticut, was founded in 1737 by a priest
missionary sent out to the colonies from
London by the Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel (SPG). The first clergyman to
minister to this young parish was the Rev.
Henry Caner, who was born in England about
1700 and emigrated to New Haven, where he
attended Yale University and graduated from
there in 1724. He lived in Fairfield and, before
the Revolution, was recognized as the leader of
the Anglican clergy in America. He and his
brother Richard were important figures in the
early history of the town of Fairfield, and
Richard became the first installed rector of
St. Paul’s. Henry returned to England and was
ordained there to the priesthood, following
which time he returned again to America and
visited Norwalk as early as 1729.