Wilfred John Simkin (15 June 1883 – 8 July 1967) was the 6th Anglican Bishop of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

whose

episcopate A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

spanned a 20-year period during the middle of the 20th century. Born in Staffordshire he was educated at ''The Prince of Wales School'',

Rugeley Rugeley ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Cannock Chase District in Staffordshire, England. It lies on the north-eastern edge of Cannock Chase next to the River Trent; it is situated north of Lichfield, south-east of Stafford, nort ...

and

Lichfield Theological College Lichfield Theological College was founded in 1857 to train Anglican clergy to serve in the Church of England. It was located on the south side of the Cathedral Close in Lichfield, Staffordshire and closed in 1972. Notable staff * Cecil Cherrin ...

before embarking on an ecclesiastical career with a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at '' Christ Church, Stafford''. Emigrating to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in 1911 he was successively

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

Wairoa Wairoa is a town and territorial authority district in New Zealand's North Island. The town is the northernmost in the Hawke's Bay region, and is located on the northern shore of Hawke Bay at the mouth of the Wairoa River and to the west o ...

, Private Chaplain to the Bishop of Waiapu and Archdeacon of Hawkes Bay/Manukau before appointment to the See of

in 1940. He was consecrated bishop on 11 June 1940. An enigmatic man, he worked tirelessly to complete the building of Holy Trinity Cathedral. In the

1965 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1965 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate t ...

, Simkin was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George, for services to the community.

References

1883 births People from Rugeley Anglican archdeacons in New Zealand Anglican bishops of Auckland English emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George 1965 deaths 20th-century Anglican bishops in New Zealand Alumni of Lichfield Theological College {{Anglican-bishop-stub