Sawyer, William (1854-1942)

Primitive Methodist Magazine 1904
Primitive Methodist Magazine 1914
Primitive Methodist Magazine 1914

Early years

William was born in 1854 at York, Yorkshire to parents Thomas and Ann. Thomas was a baker. His parents were Wesleyan. When only seven years of age William won a Bible for his knowledge of the Catechism and the Scriptures.

He was converted at Bridlington when about nineteen, and almost immediately his name appeared on the plan. William worked as a gardener before entering the ministry.

Ministry

William served the General Missionary Committee as special missioner for three years either side of appointments to Torquay. He served on the Candidates Examining Committee for several years and was District Missionary Secretary for some time.

His obituary records that William was an evangelical of the old school. He was gifted with an unusually robust constitution and never spared himself in labours. When he superannuated, William continued to preach and attend worship in spite of almost complete deafness.

Family

William married Mary Kingdom (abt1860-1936) in the summer of 1882 at Hastings, Sussex. Census returns identify seven of eight children.

  • Gerald William Bright (1883-1973) – a colour mixer in worsted mill (1911)
  • Frederick Grant (1889-1964) – a silversmith (1911)
  • Malinda Annie Mary (1891-1943) – a draper’s shop assistant (1911); married George James Short in 1920
  • Roland John (1895-1979) – a civil servant
  • Rhoda Emmie (1895-1978) – a draper’s shop assistant (1911); married Edward H Luffman in 1919
  • Constance Martha (1898-1976)
  • Marion Grace (b abt1902)

William died on 29 November 1942 at Harrow, Middlesex.

Circuits

  • Sunderland
  • 1878 Rugby
  • 1880 Hastings
  • 1881 Plymouth
  • 1883 Torquay
  • 1887 Evangelist
  • 1890 Torquay
  • 1894 Bradford III
  • 1895 Halifax I
  • 1900 Birmingham
  • 1909 Bradford I
  • 1914 Southampton II
  • 1921 Harrow (Sup)

References

Primitive Methodist Magazine 1904/533; 1914/630

Methodist Minutes 1943/124

W Leary, Directory of Primitive Methodist Ministers and their Circuits, 1990

Census Returns and Births, Marriages & Deaths Registers

No Comments

Start the ball rolling by posting a comment on this page!

Add a comment about this page

Your email address will not be published.