StJohnsAshfield Centenary Sutton p20 William Cowper

William Macquarie Cowper (known in his youth as Macquarie; 3 July 1810 – 14 June 1902) was an Australian

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

archdeacon and

Dean of Sydney St Andrew's Cathedral (also known as St Andrew's Anglican Cathedral) is a cathedral church (building), church of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The cathedral is the seat of the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney ...

. Cowper was born in Sydney, the son of the Revd

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scenes of the Engli ...

, assistant colonial chaplain, and his second wife, Ann (née Barrell) . Educated by his father and at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, he graduated BA from

Magdalen Hall Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main gate to the Bodleian Library. The colle ...

in 1833 and MA in 1835. Following admission to deacon´s order, he was appointed

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are as ...

of St Petrox, Dartmouth, and ordained

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

in 1834. He returned to Australia in 1836 and was made chaplain at Port Stephens,

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

where he remained for 20 years. He then became Acting Principal of

Moore Theological College Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The Anglican Archbishop of Sydney holds ''ex officio'' the presidency of t ...

, Sydney, for a few months after the college opened at Liverpool on 1 March 1856, following which he became incumbent of St. John´s,

Bishopthorpe Bishopthorpe is a village and civil parish three miles south of York in the City of York Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Bishopthorpe is ...

. In 1858 Cowper succeeded his father at St Philip's Church, Sydney. Later the same year he was appointed Archdeacon and Dean of Sydney. In 1869 he left St Philip¨s for the cathedral parish, which he occupied until his death. He several times acted as commissary for bishops

Frederic Barker Frederic Barker (17 March 1808 – 6 April 1882) was the second Anglican bishop of Sydney. Early life Barker was born at Baslow, Derbyshire, England, fifth son of the Rev. John Barker and his wife Jane, née Whyte. He was educated at The Ki ...

and

Alfred Barry Alfred Barry (15 January 18261 April 1910) was the third Anglican Bishop of Sydney, Bishop of Sydney serving 1884–1889. Over the course of his career, Barry served as headmaster of independent schools, Principal (university), Principal of Ki ...

during their absences in England. In 1896 he was chosen

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the

Australian College of Theology The Australian University of Theology (AUT), formerly known as the Australian College of Theology (ACT), is an Collegiate university, collegiate Theology, theological university based in Sydney, New South Wales. The university delivers awards i ...

. He was admired for his piety and kindliness. He published ''Episcopate of the Right Reverend Frederic Barker, D.D.'' in 1888 and his autobiography, ''The Autobiography and Reminiscences of William Macquarie Cowper'', was published soon after his death. Cowper died, aged 91, at the Deanery in Sydney on 14 June 1902, and was buried at St Jude's cemetery, Randwick. He was married twice and was survived by his children.

References

* K. J. Cable
Cowper, William Macquarie (1810 - 1902)
''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 3, MUP, 1969, pp. 480–482. * * Peter G. Bolt, William Cowper (1778-1858). The Indispensable Parson. The Life and Influence of Australia's First Parish Clergyman (Camperdown, NSW: Bolt Publishing Services, 2009). *

External links

Parish Church of St Philip, Sydney
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowper, William Macquarie 1810 births 1902 deaths Deans of Sydney Anglican archdeacons in Australia Academic staff of Moore Theological College Alumni of Magdalen Hall, Oxford