William MacKinnon (1843–1925) was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly in 1908/09.

Life

He was born in 1843 at Strath on the

Isle of Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated ...

, the son of Lachlan MacKinnon and his wife Catherine. He was educated locally at the Free Church School. His training as a minister is unclear but he was first ordained in

Ballachulish The village of Ballachulish ( or , from Scottish Gaelic ) in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred on former slate quarries. The name Ballachulish (Ballecheles, 1522 – Straits town) was more correctly applied to the area now called No ...

Free Church in 1878. He translated to

North Uist North Uist ( gd, Uibhist a Tuath; sco, North Uise) is an island and community in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Etymology In Donald Munro's ''A Description of the Western Isles of Scotland Called Hybrides'' of 1549, North Uist, Benbecula and ...

in 1884. He then moved to the twin parishes of Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston, and finally, in 1894, to the

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

Free Church. At the Union of 1900 he remained in the Free Church of Scotland. In 1908, in succession to Rev Murdo Mackenzie, he was elected

Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states th ...

, the highest position in the Free Church. In 1909 he was succeeded in turn by Rev James Henry. He died at

on 13 February 1925. He is buried in Gairloch.

Family

In 1884 at

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

he married Marion Mackintosh, daughter of Murdoch Mackintosh, also from Strath. She died in Fort William in 1929.

Publications

*''Memories of Rev William MacKinnon of Gairloch'' compiled by Donald MacKinnon

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacKinnon, William 1843 births 1925 deaths People from the Isle of Skye 19th-century Ministers of the Free Church of Scotland 20th-century Ministers of the Free Church of Scotland