Charles Cardwell McCabe Charles Cardwell McCabe ( October 11 , 1836 – December 19 , 1906 ) was an American who distinguished himself as a Methodist pastor , an Army chaplain during the American Civil War , a Church executive chiefly in the field of fundraising , as Chancellor of American University , and as a Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church ( M . E . ) , elected in 1896 . Birth and Family . Charles was born October 11 , 1836 in Athens , Ohio on the same day as Bishop Isaac Wilson Joyce , another Ohio - born M . E . Bishop . Charles was the son of Robert McCabe , a tailor , and Sarah Robinson . His grandfather was also Robert McCabe , who was an early Methodist Class - Leader and an adviser to John Stewart , pioneer of American Methodist missions . Ancestor Owen McCabe was of Covenanter stock from County Tyrone , Ireland . He immigrated to America in the 1740s and by 1750 was located in Sherman ’ s Valley of Cumberland County , Pennsylvania , in an area that eventually ( 1820 ) became Tyrone Township of Perry County , Pennsylvania . Charles went to the altar at eight years of age under the pleading of " Saint " Minturn . He was appointed to lead a class at the age of only fifteen . Education . In 1854 Charles enrolled at Ohio Wesleyan University , where his uncle , Lorenzo Dow McCabe was a distinguished professor . Although Charles withdrew from school in 1858 , he graduated with a B . A . degree in 1860 and was accorded on honorary Master of Arts in 1864 . He then became a High School Principal . Ordained Ministry . McCabe joined the Ohio Annual Conference of the M . E . Church in 1860 . He was ordained " Deacon " by Bishop Matthew Simpson , September 23 , 1860 in Gallipolis , Ohio , and " Elder " by Bishop Thomas Asbury Morris , September 7 , 1862 in Zanesville , Ohio . Chaplaincy . As the Civil War broke out , McCabe helped raise a regiment of infantry for the Union Army . By October 8 , 1862 McCabe was serving as chaplain of the 122nd Ohio Infantry . He was captured by the Confederate Army and sent to Libby Prison , where he served as a chaplain to his fellow prisoners - of - war . During his time as a prisoner of war , McCabe taught " The Battle Hymn of the Republic " to other prisoners to maintain high spirits , and was later invited to the Lincoln White House because of his actions . Ill health later forced him to resign his chaplaincy , January 8 , 1864 . Post - War Ministry . Following the war , as the most famous U . S . A . Chaplain , he lectured all over the U . S . on " " The Bright Side of Life in Libby Prison . " " Prior to entering the Episcopacy , he served on the Christian Commission , as a Pastor and as the Church Extension Secretary . He was a missionary promoter , an evangelist and a Gospel singer . Bishop McCabe also served as Chancellor of American University from December 1902 until his death in December 1906 . He was especially prominent in the University ' s initial fundraising . Indeed , he thought of himself as " " doomed to raise money , " " in such high demand he was as a raiser of funds for churches . Also known as Methodism ' s " " Singing Chaplain , " " from coast to coast he sang " " We ' re building two a day , " " a song written in response to the charge that the church was dying out , a charge made by a widely known agnostic of the day , Robert G . Ingersoll . Death and Burial . Bishop McCabe fell ill in New York City after a fundraising trip to the Methodist Episcopal Church of Torrington , Connecticut . He died in New York Hospital on December 19 , 1906 , aged 70 , and was buried in Rose Hill Cemetery in Chicago .