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John Elmslie (1 October 1831 – 23 July 1907) was a Scottish minister who twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly for the Northern Assembly of New Zealand for the
He was born at Southfield in Keig in
Free Church of Scotland Free Church of Scotland may refer to:
* Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), seceded in 1843 from the Church of Scotland. The majority merged in 1900 into the United Free Church of Scotland; historical
* Free Church of Scotland (since 1900), rema ...
(1872 and 1892).
Life
He was born at Southfield in Keig in Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland.
It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...
on 1 October 1831 the son of Peter Elmslie a farmer, and his wife Kathrine Lawson.
He studied Divinity at Aberdeen University and the Free Church College in Aberdeen. He was ordained as a minister by the Free Church of Scotland in 1862 at Kennethmont
Kennethmont (archaically Kinnethmont) is a village in the Marr area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately south of Huntly.
It has a population of approximately 470 people. Kennethmont children attend Kennethmont Primary School and the Gordo ...
in Aberdeenshire.
In 1866 he emigrated to New Zealand on the ship ''Caribou'' and settled in Wanganui. In 1872 he served as Moderator of the Presbyterian Church for North Island.
In 1876 he was translated to St Paul's Church in Christchurch; this was a breakaway congregation from St Andrew's Church (which has since been relocated and now belongs to Rangi Ruru Girls' School
Rangi Ruru Girls' School is a New Zealand private girls' day and boarding secondary school located in Merivale, an inner suburb of Christchurch. The school is affiliated to the Presbyterian Church, and serves approximately girls from Years 7 ...
). The most prominent person of the breakaway congregation was John Anderson John Anderson may refer to:
Business
*John Anderson (Scottish businessman) (1747–1820), Scottish merchant and founder of Fermoy, Ireland
* John Byers Anderson (1817–1897), American educator, military officer and railroad executive, mentor of ...
, the second Mayor of Christchurch (1868–69). Elmslie commissioned architect Samuel Farr to build a bigger and grander church— St Paul's Trinity Pacific Church—at a cost of £12000.
In 1890 Aberdeen University awarded him an honorary Doctor of Divinity
A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity.
In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...
.
In 1892 he served as Moderator – the highest position in his church.
He retired in 1903 and died in Christchurch on 23 July 1907. He is buried with his first wife in Addington Cemetery in Christchurch.
Family
In 1862 in Keig, he married Jessie Mitchell (1836–1878) a farmer's daughter, also of Keig, a long-term acquaintance since childhood. She died giving birth to their seventh child in 1878. In 1881, he married Jane Harper Anderson (1853–1936), the eldest daughter of John Anderson. He had two children by his second wife.References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elmslie, John 1831 births 1907 deaths People from Keig Religious leaders from Christchurch Scottish emigrants to New Zealand 19th-century Ministers of the Free Church of Scotland