List of Presidents of the Methodist Conference
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John Wesley, founder of Methodism, organised and presided over the first Methodist Conference, which was to become the Church's governing body. This article lists his successors, who are elected by the British Methodist Conference to serve a one-year term. Presidents follow Wesley's example in travelling the length and breadth of Great Britain, visiting and preaching in local Methodist chapels.[1] Presidents also have an important role representing the Methodist Church in the wider world (notably appearing at the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in Whitehall).[1][2]
The first century of British Methodism was characterised by multiple splits from the original Wesleyan Methodist Church. Other Methodist branches, such as the Primitive Methodist Church, Bible Christian Church and the Methodist New Connexion had their own Conferences and Presidents. The various streams of Methodism were re-united in 1932.
Contents
John Wesley and the early Methodist Conference
Methodism traces its roots to eighteenth century Anglican preacher John Wesley and, to a lesser extent, his brother Charles. The Wesley brothers began an evangelical revival within the Church of England. They adopted unconventional and controversial practices, such as open-air preaching, to reach factory labourers and newly urbanised masses uprooted from their traditional village culture at the start of the Industrial Revolution.
Over time, John Wesley organised converts locally, founding Methodist "societies", organised into "circuits", and linked in a "Connexion". John and Charles Wesley, along with four other clergy and four lay preachers, met for consultation in London in 1744. This set a precedent for future conferences; subsequently, the annual conference became the ruling body of the Methodist movement.
In 1773, John Wesley had designated John William Fletcher to be his successor, however he outlived Fletcher. In 1784 Wesley made provision for the governance of Methodism after his death through the Yearly Conference of the People called Methodists. He nominated 100 people and declared them to be its members and laid down the method by which their successors were to be appointed.
Wesley himself was the original president of the Methodist Conference, but after his death it was agreed that in future, so much authority would not be placed in the hands of one man. Instead, the President would be elected for one year only, to sit in Wesley's chair.
A list of Wesley's early successors was produced by the Wesleyan Methodist Church, listing all Presidents up to 1890.[3] The My Methodist History website has compiled all Methodist presidents from the 1932 deed of union to 2000.[4] and the My Primitive Methodist Ancestors site has collated the list for the Primitive Methodist presidents from their first conference up to union of 1932.[5] The gap in the Wesleyan records is filled from entries in the Methodist Who's Who of 1912[6] and the Wesleyan Historical Society Dictionary of Methodism[7] The Methodist Church of Great Britain website has a list of Presidents (and lay Vice-Presidents) since 2000.[8] Additional information on twentieth century Presidents is provided by the Manchester University's Methodist Archives and Research Centre.[9]
1791‒1819
| Year of election | President of Wesleyan Methodist Conference |
|---|---|
| 1791 | William Thompson |
| 1792 | Alexander Mather |
| 1793 | John Pawson |
| 1794 | Thomas Hanby |
| 1795 | Joseph Bradford |
| 1796 | Thomas Taylor (DNB00) |
| 1797 | Thomas Coke LL.D |
| 1798 | Joseph Benson |
| 1799 | Samuel Bradburn |
| 1800 | James Wood |
| 1801 | John Pawson |
| 1802 | Joseph Taylor SEN. |
| 1803 | Joseph Bradford |
| 1804 | Henry Moore (DNB00) |
| 1805 | Thomas Coke LL.D |
| 1806 | Adam Clarke M.A LL.D |
| 1807 | John Barber |
| 1808 | James Wood |
| 1809 | Thomas Taylor (DNB00) |
| 1810 | Joseph Benson |
| 1811 | Charles Atmore |
| 1812 | Joseph Entwisle |
| 1813 | Walter Griffith |
| 1814 | Adam Clarke LL.D |
| 1815 | John Barber |
| 1816 | Richard Reece |
| 1817 | John Gaulter |
| 1818 | Jonathan Edmonson M.A |
| 1819 | Jonathan Crowther |
1820–1932 Wesleyans and Primitives
(During the early years of the Primitives conference the presidents were not recorded, and may have been elected for each day of the conference. A later record indicates that amongst those serving as Primitive Methodist presidents before 1849, there were, in addition to those listed below, Hugh Bourne, William Garner, Thomas Bateman, Joseph Bailey, George Tetley, Sampson Turner.[10])
| Year of election | President of Wesleyan Methodist Conference | President of Primitive Methodist Conference |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | Jabez Bunting A.M D.D | George Handford |
| 1821 | George Marsden | |
| 1822 | Adam Clarke LL.D | |
| 1823 | Henry Moore (DNB00) | |
| 1824 | Robert Newton D.D | |
| 1825 | Joseph Entwisle | Thomas King |
| 1826 | Richard Watson | James Bourne Esq |
| 1827 | John Stephens | |
| 1828 | Jabez Bunting A.M. | |
| 1829 | James Townley D.D. | James Bourne Esq |
| 1830 | George Morley | |
| 1831 | George Marsden | |
| 1832 | Robert Newton | |
| 1833 | Richard Treffry SEN | |
| 1834 | Joseph Taylor (2ND) | |
| 1835 | Richard Reece | Thomas King |
| 1836 | Jabez Bunting D.D | |
| 1837 | Edmund Grindrod | |
| 1838 | Thomas Jackson | |
| 1839 | Theophilus Lessey | |
| 1840 | Robert Newton | |
| 1841 | James Dixon D.D | |
| 1842 | John Hannah D.D | James Bourne Esq |
| 1843 | John Scott | John Garner |
| 1844 | Jabez Bunting D.D | William Clowes |
| 1845 | Jacob Stanley | William Clowes |
| 1846 | William Atherton | William Clowes |
| 1847 | Samuel Jackson | John Garner |
| 1848 | Robert Newton D.D | Thomas King |
| 1849 | Thomas Jackson | Stephen Longdin |
| 1850 | John Beecham D.D | John Garner |
| 1851 | John Hannah D.D | John Garner |
| 1852 | John Scott | John Garner |
| 1853 | John Lomas | Joseph Bailey Esq |
| 1854 | John Farrar | John Garner |
| 1855 | Isaac Keeling | George Tetley |
| 1856 | Robert Young | Sampson Turner |
| 1857 | Francis A West | Thomas Bateman Esq |
| 1858 | John Bowers | Sampson Turner |
| 1859 | Samuel D Waddy D.D | William Garner |
| 1860 | William W Stamp D.D | John Petty |
| 1861 | John Rattenbury | William Garner |
| 1862 | Charles Prest | William Harland |
| 1863 | George Osborn D.D | William Antliff |
| 1864 | William L Thornton M.A | James Garner |
| 1865 | William Shaw | William Antliff |
| 1866 | William Arthur M.A | George Lamb |
| 1867 | John Bedford | Thomas Bateman Esq |
| 1868 | Samuel Romilly Hall | William Lister |
| 1869 | Frederick James Jobson D.D. | Phillip Pugh |
| 1870 | John Farrar | Moses Lupton |
| 1871 | John H James D.D | James Garner |
| 1872 | Luke H Wiseman M.A | James Macpherson |
| 1873 | George T Perks M.A | Samuel Antliff |
| 1874 | W Morley Punshon LL.D | William Rowe |
| 1875 | Gervase Smith D.D | Robert Smith |
| 1876 | Alexander M'Aulay | John Dickenson |
| 1877 | William Burt Pope D.D | Thomas Smith |
| 1878 | James Harrison Rigg D.D | Henry Phillips |
| 1879 | Benjamin Gregory D.D | Thomas Newell |
| 1880 | Ebenezer Evans Jenkins M.A D.D | Colin C McKechnie |
| 1881 | George Osborn D.D | Charles Kendall |
| 1882 | Charles Garrett | Joseph Wood |
| 1883 | Thomas M'Cullagh | William Cutts |
| 1884 | Frederic Greeves D.D | George Lamb |
| 1885 | Richard Roberts | Ralph Fenwick |
| 1886 | Robert Newton Young D.D | John Atkinson |
| 1887 | John Walton M.A | Thomas Whitehead |
| 1888 | Joseph Bush | Thomas Whittaker |
| 1889 | Charles Henry Kelly | Joseph Toulson |
| 1890 | William Fiddian Moulton M.A D.D[9] | John Hallam |
| 1891 | Thomas Bowman Stephenson[9] | Joseph Ferguson |
| 1892 | James Harrison Rigg[9] | James Travis |
| 1893 | Henry John Pope[9] | John Stephenson |
| 1894 | Walford Green[9] | John Wenn |
| 1895 | David James Waller | John Watson |
| 1896 | Dr Marshall Randles | William Jones |
| 1897 | William L Watkinson | James Jackson |
| 1898 | Hugh Price Hughes[9] | John Smith |
| 1899 | John Edward Radcliffe | William Goodman |
| 1900 | Thomas Allen | Joseph Odell |
| 1901 | William Theophllus Davison | H Bickerstaffe Kendall |
| 1902 | John Shaw Banks | Thomas Mitchell |
| 1903 | Marshall Hartley | Thomas H Hunt |
| 1904 | Silvester Whitehead | Robert Harrison |
| 1905 | Charles Henry Kelly | George E Butt |
| 1906 | Albert Clayton | George Parkin |
| 1907 | John Smith Simon | Henry Yooll |
| 1908 | John Scott Lidgett | James Pickett |
| 1909 | William Perkins | Sir William P Hartley |
| 1910 | John Hornabrook | Samuel S Henshaw |
| 1911 | Dr Henry Haigh | Edwin Dalton |
| 1912 | Frederick Luke Wiseman | Thomas Jackson |
| 1913 | Samuel Francis Collier | Joseph Ritson |
| 1914 | Dr Dinsdale Thomas Young | George Bennett |
| 1915 | Richard Waddy Moss | John D Thompson |
| 1916 | Dr John Greenwood Tasker | Arthur T Guttery |
| 1917 | Simson Johnson | James T Parr |
| 1918 | Samuel Chadwick | William A Hammond |
| 1919 | Dr William Theodore Aquila Barber | James Watkin |
| 1920 | John Thomas Wardle Stafford | Matthew P Davison |
| 1921 | Dr John Alfred Sharpe | Samuel Horton |
| 1922 | John E Wakerley | Henry J Taylor |
| 1923 | Thomas Ferrier Hulme | George Armstrong |
| 1924 | Amos Burnet | Joseph T Barkby |
| 1925 | John Holland Ritson | James Lockhart |
| 1926 | William Russell Maltby | Albert L Humphries |
| 1927 | William Hodson Smith | George Armitage |
| 1928 | Dr John William Lightley | John G Bowran |
| 1929 | William Francis Lofthouse | James H Saxton |
| 1930 | Dr Herbert Brook Workman | William M Kelley |
| 1931 | Charles Rider Smith | Edward McLellan |
| 1932 | Dr Henry Maldwyn Hughes | William Younger |
Post-1932
In 1932 each denomination held a conference which elected their own interim presidents, followed a few months later by a unified conference at which a new president was elected.
| Year of election | President of Methodist Conference |
|---|---|
| 1932 | John Scott Lidgett |
| 1933 | Frederick Luke Wiseman |
| 1934 | William Younger |
| 1935 | William Christopher Jackson |
| 1936 | Charles Ensor Walters |
| 1937 | Robert Bond |
| 1938 | William Lansdell Wardle |
| 1939 | Richard Pyke |
| 1940 | Henry Bett |
| 1941 | Walter Henry Armstrong |
| 1942 | Walter James Noble |
| 1943 | Leslie Frederick Church |
| 1944 | Wilbert Francis Howard |
| 1945 | Archibald Walter Harrison |
| 1946 | Robert Newton Flew |
| 1947 | William Edward Farndale |
| 1948 | Ernest Benson Perkins |
| 1949 | Harold Burgoyne Rattenbury |
| 1950 | William Edward Sangster |
| 1951 | Howard Watkins-Jones |
| 1952 | Colin Augustus Roberts |
| 1953 | Donald Oliver Soper |
| 1954 | William Russel Shearer |
| 1955 | Leslie Dixon Weatherhead |
| 1956 | Harold Crawford Walters |
| 1957 | Harold Roberts |
| 1958 | Norman Henry Snaith |
| 1959 | Eric W Baker |
| 1960 | Edward Rogers |
| 1961 | Maldwyn L Edwards |
| 1962 | Leslie Davison |
| 1963 | Frederic Greeves |
| 1964 | A. Kingsley Lloyd |
| 1965 | W. Walker Lee |
| 1966 | Douglas W. Thompson |
| 1967 | Irvonwy Morgan |
| 1968 | E. Gordon Rupp |
| 1969 | Brian Stapleton O'Gorman |
| 1970 | Rupert E. Davies |
| 1971 | Kenneth L. Waights |
| 1972 | Harry O. Morton |
| 1973 | Donald R. Lee |
| 1974 | J. Russell Pope |
| 1975 | Alfred Raymond George |
| 1976 | Colin M. Morris |
| 1977 | B. Arthur Shaw |
| 1978 | Donald English |
| 1979 | William Gowland |
| 1980 | Kenneth G. Greet |
| 1981 | John A. Newton |
| 1982 | Norwyn E. Denny |
| 1983 | Amos Samuel Cresswell |
| 1984 | Gordon Emerson Barritt |
| 1985 | Christopher Hughes Smith |
| 1986 | Nigel Langley Gilson |
| 1987 | William Rhys Davies |
| 1988 | Richard Granville Jones |
| 1989 | John James Vincent |
| 1990 | Donald English |
| 1991 | Ronald William Cecil Hoar |
| 1992 | Kathleen Margaret Richardson |
| 1993 | Brian Edgar Beck |
| 1994 | Leslie John Griffiths |
| 1995 | Brian Richard Hoare |
| 1996 | Nigel Thomas Collinson |
| 1997 | John Brian Taylor |
| 1998 | William Peter Stephens |
| 1999 | Stuart John Burgess |
| 2000 | Inderjit Bhogal |
| 2001 | Christina Le Moignan |
| 2002 | Ian White |
| 2003 | Dr Neil Richardson |
| 2004 | Will Morrey |
| 2005 | Tom Stuckey[11] |
| 2006 | Graham Carter |
| 2007 | Dr Martyn Atkins |
| 2008 | Stephen Poxon |
| 2009 | David Gamble |
| 2010 | Alison Tomlin |
| 2011 | Leo Osborn |
| 2012 | Mark Wakelin |
| 2013 | Ruth Gee |
| 2014 | Kenneth Howcroft[12] |
| 2015 | Steven Wild |
| 2016 | Dr Roger Walton (designated) |
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Wesley and his successors - a centenary memorial
- ↑ mymethodisthistory.org.uk Presidents of The Conference since 1932 Accessed 2 September 2014
- ↑ My Primitive Methodist Ancestors: Presidents of Conference. Accessed 2 September 2014
- ↑ The Methodist Who's Who. 1912 ed. published by Charles H Kelly, London.
- ↑ Wesleyan Historical Society Dictionary of Methodism. Accessed 2 September 2014
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 The Methodist Archives Biographical Index, The John Rylands University Library, The University of Manchester Archive Accessions, 1977–2011
- ↑ History of the Primitive Methodist Connexion, J H Kendall, (undated, 1888?)
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- The Methodist Archives Biographical Index The University of Manchester Library
- The Methodist Conference website
