John Rankine (1816–1885) was a Scottish minister who served as

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the ministers and elders of the Church of Scotland, minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week i ...

in 1883.

Life

He was born in

Maybole Maybole is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is bypass ...

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

on 28 December 1816 the fourth child of John Rankine (1764–1846) and Marion Sloane (1778–1863). His ancestors were called McRankine, however his father simplified the name to Rankine. He was educated at Maybole Parish School then at

Ayr Academy Ayr Academy (Scottish Gaelic: ''Acadamaidh Inbhir Àir'') is a non-denominational secondary school situated within the Craigie Estate area at University Avenue in Ayr, South Ayrshire. It is a comprehensive school for children of ages 11–18 fro ...

. He studied divinity at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

graduating with an MA. In 1842 he was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of the Church of Scotland in Ayr. He worked briefly as an assistant minister in

Lauder The former Royal Burgh of Lauder (, gd, Labhdar) is a town in the Scottish Borders in the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Berwickshire. On the Southern Upland Way, the burgh lies southeast of Edinburgh, on the western edge of the Lamme ...

. He moved to Sorn, then called Dalgain church, as assistant in 1843 and replaced Rev J Stewart as minister at Sorn in 1846. He was minister of

Sorn Vehicle Excise Duty (VED; also known as "vehicle tax", "car tax", and more controversially as "road tax", and formerly as a "tax disc") is an annual tax that is levied as an excise duty and which must be paid for most types of powered vehicles which ...

from 1846 to 1888. In 1880 the University of Edinburgh awarded him an honorary doctorate (DD). In 1883 he was elected

in succession to Very Rev

William Milligan William Milligan (15 March 182111 December 1893) was a renowned Scottish theologian. He studied at the University of Halle in Germany, and eventually became a professor at the University of Aberdeen. He is best known for his commentary on th ...

. He died on 30 April 1885 aged 88, and is buried in the churchyard at Sorn against the wall. His position at Sorn was filled by Rev H.C. Begg.

Family

In 1845 he married Jane Simson (1819–1879), the daughter of Charles Simson of Threepwood.ODNB: John Rankine Together they had nine children. Graham and Jane died in infancy, Marion Elizabeth Rankine married Very Rev Archibald Scott, Moderator in 1896, Margaret Romanes Rankine married Very Rev John Brown Moderator in 1916Grave of Very Rev John Brown> and

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

, a legal author.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rankine, John 1816 births 1885 deaths People from Maybole People educated at Ayr Academy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland People from Sorn, East Ayrshire