Andrew Reed (27 November 178725 February 1862) was an English

Congregational Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

minister and hymnwriter, who became a prominent

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

and

social reformer A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary move ...

. He was the father of Sir Charles Reed and grandfather of

Talbot Baines Reed Talbot Baines Reed (3 April 1852 – 28 November 1893) was an English writer of young adult fiction, boys' fiction who established a genre of school story, school stories that endured into the mid-20th century. Among his best-known work is ' ...

Life

His parents were "humble tradespeople" and he was originally an apprentice. He entered

Hackney Academy Newcome's School was a fashionable boys' school in Hackney, then to the east of London, founded in the early 18th century. A number of prominent Whig families sent their sons there. The school closed in 1815, and the buildings were gutted in 182 ...

in 1807 to study theology under

George Collison George Collison (1772–1847) was an English Congregationalist and educator associated with Hackney Academy or Hackney College, which became part of New College London—itself part of the University of London. Early life Collison was born i ...

and was ordained minister of New Road Chapel in 1811. About 1830 he built the larger

Wycliffe Chapel The Wycliffe Chapel was a Congregational Chapel at 44 Philpot Street, London. It came there from Cannon Street Road and traced its roots to one of the early Independent congregations which met from 1642 at Haydon's Yard, Minories, and then in Sm ...

, where he remained until 1861. He visited America on a deputation to the Congregational Churches in 1834 and received the degree of DD from

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

. In addition to an account of his visit to America (2 vols., 1834), he compiled a hymn-book (1841), and published some sermons and books of devotion. Reed's name is permanently associated with a long list of philanthropic achievements, including the London Orphan Asylum (now

Reed's School Reed's School is an independent secondary boarding school for boys with a mixed sixth form located in Cobham, Surrey, England. There are currently around 700 day pupils (620 boys, 80 girls) with 100 full-time boarders (80 boys, 20 girls). The s ...

), the Infant Orphan Asylum,

Wanstead Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge, London, Redbridge to the east and Forest Gate to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is ...

, and the Reedham Orphanage, which he undertook on non-denominational lines because the governors of the other institutions had made the Anglican Catechism compulsory. Besides these he originated in 1847 an asylum for idiots at

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisati ...

, afterwards moved to

Earlswood Earlswood is a suburb of Redhill in Surrey, England, which lies on the A23 between Redhill (in the direction of London) and Horley (next to Gatwick Airport). Earlswood Common is a local nature reserve that separates the suburb from the sout ...

in Surrey with a branch at Colchester, and in 1855 the Royal Hospital for Incurables at Putney. His monument, a tall obelisk of polished red granite, can be seen today at the London Congregationalists' garden cemetery,

Abney Park Cemetery Abney Park cemetery is one of the "Magnificent Seven" cemeteries in London, England. Abney Park in Stoke Newington in the London Borough of Hackney is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney, D ...

close to that of his son, Charles Reed, the eminent lay Congregationalist, typefounder, and Chairman of the first London School Board.

Religious and philanthropic work

Reed was the minister of New Road Chapel, St George's-in-the-East, then at ''

'', Philpot Street, Stepney (which he helped to build in 1830 and in which a memorial tablet was placed upon his death). He founded several important charitable institutions on a non-denominational basis, including the ''Idiot Asylum at Earlswood'' now the '' Royal Earlswood Hospital''; the ''Infant Orphan Asylum'' (1827) at Wanstead; the ''Royal Hospital for Incurables'' (1855) at

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

now the '' Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability''; and the ''London Asylum for Orphans'' 1813, initially at

Lower Clapton Clapton is a district of East London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney. Clapton is divided into Upper Clapton, in the north, and Lower Clapton to the south. Clapton railway station lies north-east of Charing Cross. Geography and origin ...

in the parish of Hackney, but later moved to Watford and then, in 1946, to Cobham, Surrey, where as

, it is a private or fee-paying school. In 1844 Reed founded the Asylum for Fatherless Children, which he undertook on non-denominational lines because the governors of the other institutions had made the Anglican catechism compulsory. In 1858 the school moved to Purley, Surrey and became known as Reedham Orphanage, in honour of its founder. In addition to raising considerable sums from benefactors to found and maintain philanthropic institutions, Andrew Reed raised funds for chapel-building. At the height of this endeavour, in 1837, he was pledging to raise one hundred guineas for four chapels, and fifty for another three, besides smaller sums for several others. Two such successes were the Congregational chapel at

Hounslow Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in Gr ...

which opened in 1835, and another at

Woodford Woodford may refer to: Places Australia *Woodford, New South Wales *Woodford, Queensland, a town in the Moreton Bay Region *Woodford, Victoria Canada * Woodford, Ontario England *Woodford, Cornwall * Woodford, Gloucestershire *Woodford, Greate ...

where he preached the opening sermon in 1836. Elizabeth Holmes Reed (1794–1867), Reed's wife, worked with him in many of these charitable causes. She wrote about twenty hymns for the Hymn Book which he published in a new and enlarged edition in 1842, doubling the number her husband had written for inclusion, and authored ''Original Tales for Children'' and ''The Mother's Manual for Training Her Children'' (1865). Besides the active role of his wife, Reed's philanthropic output reflected his talent in forming a vast social network of generous and influential donors and supporters, including Sir Morton Peto, James Sherman, Francis Cox, Dr Leifchild, Lord Dudley Stuart, Angela Burdett Coutts, Lord Morpeth, Lord Robert Grosvenor, the Gurneys, Lushingtons and Morleys. His approach to religious teaching was inclusive; as emphasised in his will ''it is my particular and last request to the Boards of the London Orphan Asylum and Infant Orphan Asylum that, while they may choose to regulate the religious teaching by a catechism generally, they provide that no catechism shall be imposed on any child... and that the institution be open to all destitute orphans without respect to sex, creed, place or country''. His religious emphasis appears to have been in the spirit of

1 Corinthians 13 1 Corinthians 13 is the thirteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It is authored by Paul the Apostle and Sosthenes in Ephesus. This chapter covers the subject of Love. In the original ...

: that of the three virtues, Faith, Hope and Charity, the greatest is charity. One of his projects did not succeed in being nondenominational, however; at a fairly early stage in its history the Orphan Asylum at Wanstead was taken over by a management committee who ruled that all children must be brought up in the Church of England, a move that disadvantaged many of London's orphans who had been brought up with different religious backgrounds.

Political and social reform

Reed was active in supporting repeal of the Corn Laws, Dr Philip's initiative to right some of the wrongs of the native people of South Africa by financing their trip to London to speak directly to a Committee of the House of Commons, and took part in conferences in America (as one of two international delegates from the Congregational Union of England & Wales) in the 1830s, one of which led to the formation of Boston's first anti-slavery society. In his account of his American visit, he wrote ''Yes, the slave must go free! Slavery now has a legal existence only in America. But America is the very place, of all others, where it cannot, must not be tolerated.... Besides this, there is another field of philanthropic service open to America. It is that of seeking the welfare of the aborigines of the country. They are far less thought of, at the present moment, than the oppressed African; but their claims are not inferior, nor scarcely are their wrongs. They amount to about 500,000 persons. They have the highest claim to the soil. Justice, Truth, Mercy, Religion—Earth and Heaven, demand of America that she should assure the world she is what she professes to be, by preserving the Indian, and emancipating the African.'' Reed 1835, vol.2, pp. 186–88 His son,

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

became more directly active in politics, becoming an MP and Chairman of the first London School Board.

Death and memorial

The grave of Andrew Reed, Abney Park Cemetery, London

Reed died in

Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen E ...

, and was buried in

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area occupying the north-west part of the London Borough of Hackney in north-east London, England. It is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington the ancient parish. The ...

, north-east

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. His memorial stands at Abney House Corner, towards the south end of this Congregationalists' non-denominational cemetery. It is a tall, imposing obelisk in polished red granite situated close to the later memorial to one of his sons, Sir Charles Reed (Hackney's first MP and a Trustee Director of Abney Park Cemetery). A grand Celtic cross in memory of his grandson

stands nearby. His eldest son, Andrew (1817–1899), a Congregational minister and author, is buried with him. There is no memorial to his wife Elizabeth, and her place of burial is uncertain but may be with her parents. Andrew and Elizabeth's first child, Jasper Holmes Reed (d. 21 July 1818), was buried at the Anglican church of St Mary, Lewisham.

Books

* Reed, Andrew & Matheson, James (1823). ''Martha: a memorial of an only & beloved sister''. London:Westley & Longman. * Reed, Andrew (1835). ''A Narrative of the Visit to the American Churches, By The Deputation From The Congregational Union of England And Wales''. New York:Harper. * Gutzlaff, Charles, revised by Reed, Andrew (1838)
''China Opened: or a display of the topography, history, customs, manners, arts, manufactures, commerce, literature, religion, jurisprundence, etc. of the Chinese Empire''.
London:Smith Elder
Vol II.
* Reed, Andrew (1842). ''Hymn Book, Prepared from Dr. Watts' Psalms and Hymns and Other Hymns, with Some Originals'' * Reed, Andrew ''Revival of Religion in Wycliffe Chapel'' (1843) * Reed, Andrew & Reed, Charles (1863)'' Memoirs of the Life and Philanthropic Labours of Andrew Reed, D.D.: With Selections from His Journals.'' Strahan & co.

References

Sources

* *

External links

Cyber Hymnal - Andrew Reed

Reed's School

Reeds School website

Reeds Weybridge RFC

Abney Park Cemetery Trust website

Reedham Old Scholars' Association

successor to "The Asylum for Fatherless Children" (later called the Reedham Orphanage) {{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Andrew People educated at Reed's School Founders of English schools and colleges English philanthropists Burials at Abney Park Cemetery English Congregationalist ministers 1787 births 1862 deaths English abolitionists 18th-century Congregationalist ministers 19th-century British philanthropists Congregationalist abolitionists