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Henry Townsend (1815–1886) was an Anglican
Brief biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Townsend, Henry English Anglican missionaries Anglican missionaries in Nigeria 19th-century English Anglican priests 1815 births 1886 deaths British expatriates in Nigeria People of colonial Nigeria Yoruba history Abeokuta Anglican missionaries in Sierra Leone
Henry Townsend (1815–1886) was an Anglican missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
in Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
. Ordained in England in 1842, Townsend set off for Sierra Leone, landing there that same year. After working there only a few months, he was transferred to the Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
mission.
Career
From 1846 to 1867, he based his mission inAbeokuta
Abeokuta is the capital city of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. It is situated on the east bank of the Ogun River, near a group of rocky outcrops in a wooded savanna; north of Lagos by railway, or by water. , Abeokuta and the surrounding a ...
. Thomas Birch Freeman was actually the first European to enter Abeokuta. He arrived there on 11 December 1843. When he returned to Badagry
Badagry (traditionally Gbagli) also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that con ...
on 24 December, he met Rev. Henry Townsend and they celebrated Christmas Day together sharing the Gospel in Badagry. According to Ajisafe, he was the first European person to enter Abeokuta, arriving there on 4 January 1843 and was 'given a grand reception' (Ajisafe 1924: 85). Working with Samuel Crowther, a Yoruba Anglican priest, Townsend wrote several hymn
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...
s in Yoruba and aided in the compilation of Crowther's Yoruba primer. From 1871 to 1872 Rev Henry and Mrs Townsend were co-principals of CMS Female Institution Lagos Nigeria. Rev Henry Townsend retired in 1876.
Reverend Henry Townsend published a Yoruba newspaper in 1859. This is said to have started off the print media in Nigeria, the newspaper was first bilingual paper in Nigeria. The paper used 8 years before it demise.
See also
* Agiya Tree MonumentNotes
External links
Brief biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Townsend, Henry English Anglican missionaries Anglican missionaries in Nigeria 19th-century English Anglican priests 1815 births 1886 deaths British expatriates in Nigeria People of colonial Nigeria Yoruba history Abeokuta Anglican missionaries in Sierra Leone