User:Protalina/Thomas Hughes (priest) (1818–1876)

Thomas Hughes (priest) (1818–1876)

Thomas Hughes (1818-1876), an Anglican minister and abolitionist from Walsall, Staffordshire, moved to Dresden, Ontario with his family in 1859 to establish a mission school and mission church in the newly established Diocese of Huron. He ministered to several congregations and was appointed as a rural dean, an inspector of township schools, and a trustee of the British-American Institute, befriending Josiah Henson, its principal founder. His diary provides insights into the abolitionist culture of 19th-century Dresden.

Early life
Thomas Hughes was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, in 1818. In 1842, he married Anne Tonks. From the mid-1850s, he taught at Queen Mary's Grammar School in Walsall.

Move to Dresden, Ontario
under the aegis of the Colonial Church and School Society

Constructed in 1867 using materials from Hughes' farmland, the church was originally called the Episcopal Mission Church to the Freed Population of Canada.

Deacon, 28 September 1858; priest, 11 December 1859.

1860: Buys farm from William P. Newman. Jemima Williams dies, Alfred Whipper replaces.

Family composition in 1861.

Descriptions of Hughes by Parker T. Smith in 1861 in The Christian Recorder:

"A gentleman of distinguished ability and learning as a theologian".

"An untiring advocate of the equality of man, and knows no complexional distinction".

"We have a literary association in full blast".

In 1863, Kent County was divided for the first time into different school inspectorates, with Hughes appointed as inspector for the townships of Camden and Zone.

Rural dean of Kent

From 1868, a member of the board of trustees of the British-American Institute until the Institute was dissolved in 1868.

Death
Thomas Hughes died in Dresden on 12 April 1876. The cause of death was certified as "General Congestion from Cold" following a two-week illness. He was buried in Dresden cemetery in the integrated Anglican section &mdash; the riverside "Anglican range" &mdash; which he had himself established. Later that month, his will was proved and registered at Kent County's surrogate court and its administration granted to Hughes' executors, his sons Thomas and William. Probate was granted in England later that year, with the value of his estate given as "under £450".

Memorials
The memorial plaque in the church he established reads: "In Memory of the Reverend Thomas Hughes, First Incumbent of this Church, and Rural Dean of Kent; Who died April 12, 1876; Aged 58 years. 'It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement' Be ye therefore ready."

Pour mém : Hughes Street?

Philosophical and political views
[only to the extent those views are covered by RS that are independent of the control of the politician, writer, etc.]

Letters and diary
Wrote a letter each year to his employer, the Colonial Church and School Society (CCSS). The letters were published in the CCSS's annual reports. He also kept a diary of his doings and reflections from 1861 to 1873.

Recognition
Rev. Hughes was a great friend of Josiah Henson, who wrote a tribute to him in the second version of his autobiography.