George Muirhead (minister)

George Muirhead (1764–1847) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who joined the Free Church of Scotland in his final years and was one of their senior ministers.

Rev George Muirhead

Life
Dysart Church and manse
Cramond Kirk

He was born in the manse at Dysart, Fife in 1764 the second son of Rev Patrick Muirhead the parish minister, in a family of at least nine children.[1] The church was remodelled in 1801 by Alexander Laing.[2]

He studied at Glasgow University then at Divinity Hall in Edinburgh. He was ordained by the Church of Scotland in 1788 and was made second in charge at Dysart as assistant to his father. In 1811 he replaced has father as first in charge. In 1816 he was translated to Cramond Kirk on the north edge of Edinburgh.[3]

In 1820 he is listed as a Governor of the Edinburgh Orphan Hospital.[4]

In 1828 he commissioned the Edinburgh architect William Burn to remodel the church interior.[5]

In the Disruption of 1843 he left the established church and joined the Free Church. As the oldest minister then present he was permitted to be the second to sign the Act of separation and Deed of Demission, immediately after the first signature of Rev Thomas Chalmers.

Muirhead commissioned David Cousin immediately to design a new Cramond Free Church. This was sited to the south in Davidsons Mains.[6]

The free church preached in the old schoolhouse at Davidsons Mains. Muirhead preached until 1844 when he was replaced by Rev Alexander Campbell Fraser. A new church was rapidly built for the Free Church, also in Davidsons Mains and opened in December 1843. As the Free Church manse was not erected until 1857 it is unclear if Muirhead continued to live at Cramond manse.[7]

He died in Cramond in 1847. He is buried in Cramond churchyard.[8]

Artistic Recognition

He was photographed by Hill & Adamson in 1844.[9]

Family

In 1807 he married Maxwell Fleming (sic).

Their children included Rev Patrick Thomas Muirhead (1819-1888) minister of Kippen.

References
  1. "Family tree of James Muirhead". Geneanet.
  2. Buildings of Scotland: Fife by John Gifford
  3. Ewing, William Annals of the Free Church
  4. An Historical Account of the Orphan Hospital of Edinburgh
  5. Buildings of Scotland: Edinburgh; Gifford, John; McWilliam, Colin; Walker, David (
  6. Buildings of Scotland: Edinburgh (Davidsons Mains) by Gifford McWilliam and Walker
  7. "Cramond, Midlothian, Scotland Genealogy". FamilySearch Wiki.
  8. https://www.cramondassociation.org.uk/downloads/leaflets/Walk%20Cram%20&%20Cram%20Isle%20-Stef%202016a2.pdf
  9. "Rev. Dr George Muirhead, 1764 - 1847. Of Cramond; Free Church minister". National Galleries of Scotland.
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