My Theme - A-Z Challenge 2023
Family Traits, Quirks and Characteristics
D is for DEVOUT
My Cousin's Ancestor - an African Missionary
A pioneering South
African Missionary, a politician, a test cricketer - and one of the leading scientists of the 20th century
- you can stumble across some amazing stories when you start to delve into sidelines of
your family history.
Such was the
experience of my cousin, Stuart who was researching the family of his great
grandmother Isabel Edward from Banchory, Aberdeenshire.
Isabel's sister Jesse married William
Dower in 1865 and the
photograph here shows Wiiliam Dower himself (1837-1919) and his wife
Jesse Edward (1838-1924), with their respective parents - William's
parents John Dower (1808-1872) and his wife Jane Forbes (1811-1866)
and Jesse's parents Alexander Edward (1811-1879) and Margaret Stewart (1811-1905)
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The original of this wedding photograph is in the museum in Kokstad, South Africa.
William Dower, first trained as a joiner - a trade which was to stand him in good stead in his later life. But he felt called to the church, went to Edinburgh University on a bursary and was ordained as a Congregational Minister. He was appointed by the London Missionary Society as a Wesleyan Missionary in South Africa and he and his new wife Jesse set sail there .
In March
1870, William and Jesse set out on an ox wagon journey to East
Griqualand and the town of Kokstad, where he was asked to take on
the role of pastor.
William drew the plans for the first family home in Kokstad and did much of the
building himself, completing it in 1871. The windows and
doors were made by his father and imported from Scotland. The building still
stands and is now a craft outlet.
The church building was also built by the Reverend Dower in the Gothic revival style of the time. It has has beautiful examples of woodwork, bearing testimony to his skill as a carpenter.
The opening in 1877 was marred by sadness, in
that the ceremony was due to be performed by William's eldest child Mina
Margaret Jane, but she died just a week before the opening date, aged only
11. .
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The Griqua Church Kokstad built by Rev. William Dower and opened in May 1877
Jesse is in the centre front and William is just behind her. The other lady in the photo who looking very much like Jesse is Jesse’s sister Margaret Edward,who was a qualified teacher teacher and at one time had taught at the Free Church School at Inch in Wigtownshire. She followed William and Jesse out to South Africa and became the teacher at the local school. William went on to write a definitive history of the area in "The early annals of Kokstad and Griqualand East".
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William Dower and
his wife Jesse taken in Blackpol, Lancashire in 1913 when they made a visit to relations in England.
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William and Jesse (left) with Jesse's sister Isabella Edward and her husband John Ingram Smith of Blackpool
Postscript
William
and Jesse had family of eight - four sons and four daughters.
- The two eldest sons William John Dower and James Martin Dower became ministers of the church, like their father.
- Third son Edward Ebenezer Dower was a champion of 'native' citizens' rights and higher education in the Cape. who in 1908 became Secretary For Native Affairs, Cape Town.
- Youngest son Robert Reid Dower was a cricketer who played for South Africa against England in 1899. He later became a lawyer, but when he died in 1964, he was the oldest South African Test cricketer.
- Daughter Jesse Edward Dower married a German mining engineer Semmy Joseph Blumlein of Jewish descent. They settled in Britain and Semmy took out citizenship in 1903. Their son Alan Dower Blumlein (1902-1942) has been described as "the greatest electronic engineer of the 20th century", notable for his many inventions in telecommunications, sound recording, stereo, television and radar.
But that is another story!
William Dower died on died 21 December 1919 at "Banchory", Innes Street, Uitenhage, South Africa - his house named after his birthplace in Scotland. He left behind a legacy in the country he came to love and a family who made their mark in many different fields.
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Onto E for ENTERPRISING & ESTEEMED
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William lived a long life on South Africa - I wonder what he would think of the South Africa of today.
ReplyDeleteInteresting to have such devout ancestors in your family tree. Mine has one nun as collateral relative, but none so directly called to religious life as your ancestors.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jill and Molly, for taking the time to comment.
ReplyDeleteWhat amazing old photos and how special to see them. Their lives would have been fascinating as well as difficult at times.
ReplyDelete