Thomas Thistle (22 November 1853, in Toxteth Park,

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

– 7 February 1936, in Eling vicarage,

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

) was an Anglican

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

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 ...

and Australia. He became

headmaster A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. In som ...

Hereford Cathedral School Hereford Cathedral School is an independent, co-educational day and boarding school for pupils of ages 3 to 18 years, from Nursery to Sixth Form. Its headmaster is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school's premi ...

, a medieval foundation.

Family background

Thomas Thistle was the son of Thomas Thistle, a wool draper and gentleman of Liverpool (born 1813 Ugglebarnby,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

died 1892) and Alice Smith (born c. 1817

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Clif ...

, North Riding of Yorkshire died 1893). This Thomas Thistle had a brother, Michael Thistle who drowned in the Neptune in about 1838. His younger brother William George Thistle (1856–1901) was a medical doctor. A description of him stated that: "William George MRCS LRCP was a most engaging scamp of dissolute habits, an amusing raconteur and bonviveur generally. He made a disastrous marriage and died without issue" ThistlefamilyofWhitbyEnglandtree

His grandmother Martha Thistle (née Wilson 1779 – 1848) was the younger sister of Jane Robinson murdered at Eskdaleside in 1841.

Education

He attended

Durham School Durham School is an independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition located in Durham, North East England and was an all-boys institution until 1985, when girls were admitted to the sixth form. The school takes pupils ...

from 1866 to 1873 and in 1873 matriculated aged 19 at Corpus Christi College,

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

. In 1877, he was awarded a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree and in 1880 a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

, both from Oxford.

Later life

In 1878, he was made a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

and in 1879 a

, both in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. From 1878 to 1882, he worked as a curate at Holy Trinity

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...

within the Diocese of London. In 1881, he was unmarried and living at

Great Portland Street Great Portland Street in the West End of London links Oxford Street with Albany Street and the A501 Marylebone Road and Euston Road. A commercial street including some embassies, it divides Fitzrovia, to the east, from Marylebone to the west. ...

, Marylebone. In 1883, Thistle arrived at Waihora,

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 ...

. From 1883 to 1884, he worked as an assistant master at

Auckland University College , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

. In 1884, he was an examiner at the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

. In 1885, he received his general licence in the diocese of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Australia. From 1885 to 1886, he was warden at Christ Church College, Hobart Tasmania. On 30 November 1886 he received his letters testimonial from the bishop of Tasmania. He subsequently returned to England and from 1887 to 1890, worked as assistant to the headmaster of

Ripon Grammar School Ripon Grammar School is a co-educational, boarding and day, selective grammar school in Ripon, North Yorkshire, England. It has been named top-performing state school in the north for nine years running by ''The Sunday Times''. It is one of the ...

. From 1890 to 1897, he was headmaster at Hereford Cathedral school. In 1891 with wife residing Hereford St John. From 1897 until his death he was vicar of Eling, Southampton within the

Diocese of Winchester The Diocese of Winchester forms part of the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Founded in 676, it is one of the older dioceses in England. It once covered Wessex, many times its present size which is today most of the historic enl ...

The Thistle Chapel, Eling

Eling parish church is the tenth oldest church in England, dating back to 850. The church contains a "Thistle chapel", furnished in memory of Thomas Thistle.

Publications

The Offices of St Wilfrid affording to the use of the church of Ripon: from A Psalter belonging to the Dean and Chapter of Ripon Cathedral, with an English translation (1893) by John Whitham (Chapter clerk of Ripon Cathedral and a Life member of the Yorkshire Archeological Society) assisted by Rev. Thomas thistle, M.A. (late assistant head master of the Ripon Grammar School and now head master of the Hereford Grammar school)

References

*See obituary in

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

14 February 1936. {{DEFAULTSORT:Thistle, Thomas 1853 births 1936 deaths Schoolteachers from Merseyside British emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand educators English educational theorists Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Clergy from Liverpool People educated at Durham School 19th-century English Anglican priests 20th-century English Anglican priests