His grandfather John Hobart had moved from Hingham, Massachusetts to Philadelphia, where he married a Swedish woman and became a member of the Anglican Church.

His great-grandfather Peter Hobart was a graduate of the University of Cambridge, England, 1629, and teacher and pastor in Suffolk; he emigrated to America in 1635.

[1] Captain Hobart died when the future bishop was an infant, and was buried in the family tomb at Christ Church Burial Ground.

He studied classics under professor John Andrews, 1785–90, and followed when his mentor became vice-provost of the University of Pennsylvania, which Hobart attended, 1790–91.

The ill-health of Bishop Benjamin Moore led Hobart to effectively run the diocese for several years before formally succeeding on the latter's death in February 1816.

[citation needed] Hobart also opposed the American Bible Society, perhaps part of his strong opposition to dissenting churches.

In 1816 he published a pamphlet to dissuade Episcopalians from joining the new movement, which he thought the Protestant Episcopal Church had not the numerical or the financial strength to control.

Though he had visited many areas as a bishop, he selected the small village of Geneva on Seneca Lake for his new outpost of learning.

Upon his return, he preached a sermon entitled The United States of America compared with some European Countries, particularly England (published 1826).

[citation needed] Bishop Hobart died at Auburn, New York, on September 12, 1830, and is buried at Trinity Churchyard near his beloved General Theological Seminary in Manhattan.