(February 28, 1822 – January 21, 1903) was a prominent Presbyterian theologian and father of President Woodrow Wilson, Nashville Banner editor Joseph Ruggles Wilson Jr., and Anne E.
Wilson Howe.
In 1861, as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Augusta, Georgia, he organized the General Assembly of the newly formed the Presbyterian Church in the United States, known as the Southern Presbyterian Church, and served as its clerk (that is, chief executive officer) for thirty-seven years.