William Wagner Orwig (25 September 1810 – 29 May 1889) was a Bishop of the Evangelical Association in the United States, elected in 1859. Birth, ancestry and family Orwig was born near Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania into a faithful Evangelical home. Orwigsburg was named in honor of his great-grandfather Gottfried Orwig, who emigrated from Germany and settled there in 1741. The home of William's grandfather, George Orwig, Sr., was a preaching point where Jacob Albright was often a welcome guest. William's father, Abraham, moved to Union County, northwest of New Berlin, Pennsylvania, in 1811. William's uncle George settled in Sandusky County, Ohio in 1826. William's brother Abraham was a pioneer of the Evangelical Association Church in Bonfield, Illinois. Orwig was married to Susanna Rishel, who was a brave and gracious helpmate to him. She was the daughter of George and Catharine Rishel, a prominent Evangelical family in Centre County, Pennsylvania. William and Susan's eldest son was the Rev. A.W. Orwig, who died at the advanced age (for the time) of ninety-one. He was a member of the Ohio Conference of the Evangelical Association, and was an editor and author. Among their daughters were Mary (the wife of the Rev. Josiah Bowersox, missionary to Oregon), Susan (the wife of the Rev. Elisha A. Hoffman, and a poet and hymn writer in her own right), Elizabeth (the wife of the Rev. S.L. Wiest), Addie (the wife of Isaac Y. Moyer, a noted Cleveland layman of the Church). Conversion and early ministry Orwig was converted 4 June 1826 at the age of fifteen. He was received into the ministry in the Eastern Annual Conference of the Evangelical Association, 2 June 1828. He served as an itinerant circuit rider for several years. One of his circuits had thirty-two preaching points scattered through five counties. He was appointed Presiding Elder at the age of twenty-three. Editorial ministry The 1836 General Conference of the Evangelical Association elected Orwig Book Agent and Editor. His headquarters became New Berlin, Pennsylvania, opening in 1837. He bought his denomination's first printing press! The 1839 General Conference relieved him of the office of Publisher and made him Editor of Der Christliche Botschafter (The Christian [or Christ's] Ambassador), the official German language periodical of the Evangelical Association. Charles Hammer, also from Orwigsburg, was elected Publisher. Der Christliche Botschafter The first religious paper in the German language in America, Der Christliche Botschafter was founded in