William FINLAYSON

FINLAYSON, WILLIAM (b. Glasgow Scotland, 30 Nov 1813, d. Adelaide, SA, 19 Dec 1897). Independent pastor.

William Finlayson was born into a commercial family, as the son of Robert, a burgess of Glasgow. He commenced work in trade at the age of eleven and entered a warehousing firm at fourteen. His father was a dissenter and member of an Independent church. William did not claim conversion until the age of twenty and became attached to the Baptist cause. He was an active member of the Young Men's Society for Religious Improvement and the Monthly Tract Distribution Society.

His conversion experience fired him with missionary zeal and he hoped to work in the missions of the South Seas. Yet his attempts to convince the LMS to accept him for the work were rebuffed because of his Baptist views. Likewise an approach to Sir Fowell Buxton on the matter also failed.

When he was approached to work at the London City Mission, he accepted the position. There he came under the influence of Dr March tutor at the Stepney Baptist Academy, and applied himself to study. During his time in London he read an advertisement, probably written by George Fife Angas (q.v.), on SA. He felt that the hopes held out tor the advancement of dissenters in the colony were a call and he saw opportunity, akin to that mission in the South Seas, for ministry to 'heathen savages'. He embarked on the John Renwick on 8 October 1836 and arrived in SA in 1837. Prior to emigration, he had married Helen (née Harvey).

At Adelaide he helped the Rev T Q Stow erect the first church he built. Then, he was employed by the South Australian Company. He achieved recognition as an explorer and took a number of journeys to help discover and open up new country for settlers. He farmed for a time and successfully developed a portion of his land into the village of Mitcham. His work in this district as a zealous Christian had impact.

Yet, when his idea of ministry to the Aborigines failed to materialise he became active in the formation of the Christian church movement. He became a pastor at their Pulteney Street, Burnside and Stepney churches and lived to see this independent religious movement flourish.

Finlayson Book Committee, Finlayson: a family of Scottish Pioneers of South Australia(Adelaide, 1987); G E Loyau, Notable South Australians (Adelaide, 1885); Ken Preiss and Pamela Oborn, The Torrens Park Estate (Adelaide, 1991)

ROB LINN