John Crewes (15 July 1847 – 29 December 1925) was a New Zealand

Bible Christian The Bible Christian Church was a Methodist denomination founded by William O’Bryan, a Wesleyan Methodist local preacher, on 18 October 1815 in North Cornwall. The first society, consisting of just 22 members, met at Lake Farm in Shebbear, ...

minister, social worker and journalist. He was born in

Grampound Grampound ( kw, Ponsmeur) is a village in Cornwall, England. It is at an ancient crossing point of the River Fal and today is on the A390 road west of St Austell and east of Truro.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 204 ''Truro & Falmouth'' ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, England on 15 July 1847.

Early life

Crewes was born in

, Cornwall, in 1847. His parents were Isabella () and Richard Crewes. At an early age, he was attracted to preaching in the

Bible Christian Church The Bible Christian Church was a Methodist denomination founded by William O’Bryan, a Wesleyan Methodist local preacher, on 18 October 1815 in North Cornwall. The first society, consisting of just 22 members, met at Lake Farm in Shebbear, ...

. On 1 September 1877, he married Martha Veale. They arrived in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, New Zealand, in 1879, two years after the first Bible Christian missionaries had come to Christchurch.

Christian work in New Zealand

In early 1881, Crewes witnessed the laying of a foundation stone for the first Bible Christian church in New Zealand; this was to be built in Christchurch's

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

. At the time the church opened, it was free of debt, which is a sign of Crewes' energy. He stepped back from preaching for some time over health concerns but rejoined in 1888, with particular focus on Addington; the main jail for Christchurch was at that time in that suburb. In 1890, Crewes was transferred to

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

and settled in Newtown.

Political ambition

Crewes unsuccessfully contested the 1884 election in the

Christchurch North Christchurch North is a former New Zealand parliamentary New Zealand electorates, electorate. The electorate comprised the northern half of what is now considered the Christchurch Central City. Population centres The previous electoral redistrib ...

electorate against

Julius Vogel Sir Julius Vogel (24 February 1835 – 12 March 1899) was the eighth premier of New Zealand. His administration is best remembered for the issuing of bonds to fund railway construction and other public works. He was the first Jewish prime min ...

. At the 1887 election, Crewes contested the Sydenham electorate against

Richard Molesworth Taylor Richard Molesworth Taylor (1835 – 26 August 1919), also known as Sydenham Taylor, was a three-term New Zealand Member of Parliament. Born in London in 1835, he moved to Auckland on the ''Heather Bell'' in 1846. He travelled to Victoria in 1851 ...

. They received 392 and 766 votes respectively, so Taylor entered the

10th New Zealand Parliament The 10th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. Elections for this term were held in 4 Māori electorates and 91 European electorates on 7 and 26 September 1887, respectively. A total of 95 MPs were elected. Parliame ...

. In the 1902 election, Crewes made a last attempt to enter Parliament. He contested the Newtown electorate, but withdrew his nomination before polling day.

Death

He died in Wellington on 29 December 1925. His wife had died in Wellington on 1 August 1913. He is buried at

Karori Cemetery Karori Cemetery is New Zealand's second largest cemetery, located in the Wellington suburb of Karori. History Karori Cemetery opened in 1891 to address overcrowding at Bolton Street Cemetery. In 1909, it received New Zealand's first cremato ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crewes, John 1847 births 1925 deaths New Zealand social workers New Zealand journalists English emigrants to New Zealand British emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand people of Cornish descent Unsuccessful candidates in the 1884 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1887 New Zealand general election Burials at Karori Cemetery