The Secessionist Church, Infirmary Street, Edinburgh

William Henry Gray (1825-1908) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1888, the highest position in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

. From 1889 he was styled Very Rev Dr William H. Gray. As an author he wrote several religious books for children.

Life

He was born on 13 February 1825 at Hawkstone near St Madoes in Perthshire the son of Andrew Gray and his wife Jane Kettle. He claimed to be descended from the Grays of

Kinfauns Castle Kinfauns Castle is a 19th-century castle in the Scottish village of Kinfauns, Perth and Kinross. It is in the Castellated Gothic style, with a slight asymmetry typical of Scottish Georgian. It stands on a raised terrace facing south over the R ...

. He was educated at Perth Seminary then studied divinity at

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

graduating MA in 1841. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Perth in June 1843.''Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae''; by Hew Scott He was ordained in November 1846 at St Paul's Church in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. In 1849 he then succeeded Rev John Caird at

Lady Yester's Kirk Lady Yester's Kirk was a parish church of the Church of Scotland and one of the burgh churches of Edinburgh. Founded in 1647, it served the south-eastern part of Edinburgh's Old Town until its union with Greyfriars Kirk in 1938. Margaret, Lady ...

in central

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

where he preached for over 30 years. He then served as minister of

Liberton, Edinburgh Liberton is a suburb of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is in the south of the city, south of The Inch, east of the Braid Hills, north of Gracemount and west of Moredun. Incorporated into the city in 1920, the area was once home to ...

from 1880 to 1898. Following retiral in November 1897 he moved to 3 Carlton Terrace on

Calton Hill Calton Hill () is a hill in central Edinburgh, Scotland, situated beyond the east end of Princes Street and included in the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site. Views of, and from, the hill are often used in photographs and paintings of the cit ...

in central Edinburgh, an impressive Georgian terraced townhouse.Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory 1908-9 The building faces south over

Edinburgh Old Town The Old Town ( sco, Auld Toun) is the name popularly given to the oldest part of Scotland's capital city of Edinburgh. The area has preserved much of its medieval street plan and many Reformation-era buildings. Together with the 18th/19th-cent ...

and Holyrood Palace and is now the Free French House. He died at home in Edinburgh on 6 December 1908.

Family

In June 1855 he married Mary Smith Mitchell, daughter of Robert Mitchell an Edinburgh magistrate and widow of William Richardson Dickson of Alton in Roxburghshire who had a son and two daughters by her previous marriage.

Publications

*Morning Seed: Sermons for the Young (1861) *Sermons on Disestablishment (1893) *A Simple Catechism (1895) *Jubilee Jottings (1896) *Old Greeds and New Beliefs (1899) *Our Divine Shepherd: A Book for Young People (1903) *The Children's Friend (1907)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, William Henry 1825 births 1908 deaths 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Alumni of the University of St Andrews