John William Ashton (24 November 1866 – 20 March 1964) was the second Bishop of Grafton.

Early life

Ashton was born in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, in 1866, the son of George Ashton and his wife Fanny (née Winter).

Career

Ashton was educated at

Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield Queen Elizabeth Grammar School (QEGS) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (day school, no boarding) for boys in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The school was founded by Royal Charter of Elizabeth I of England, Queen Elizabet ...

and

University College, Oxford University College, formally The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford and colloquially referred to as "Univ", is a Colleges of the University of Oxf ...

, following which he was ordained deacon in 1892 and priest in 1893. He began his ordained ministry as a

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 ...

All Saints' Church, Northampton All Saints' Church, Northampton is a Church of England parish church in the centre of Northampton. The current church was largely built after a fire and was consecrated in 1680. It is a Grade I listed building. History Simon de Senlis' church ...

(1892-1895), and then at

St Dionysius' Church, Market Harborough St Dionysius' Church, Market Harborough is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England in Market Harborough, Leicestershire. History The earliest parts of the church date from the 13th century, with most features dating from 14th an ...

(1895-1896). In 1896 he

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

where he was Rector of St Andrew's, South Brisbane (1896-1900), Christ Church,

Bundaberg Bundaberg () is the major regional city in the Wide Bay-Burnett region of the state of Queensland, Australia. It is the List of cities in Australia by population, ninth largest city in the state. The Bundaberg central business district is situa ...

(1900-1903), briefly as a curate back in England at

St Peter's Church, Huddersfield St Peter's Church, also known as Huddersfield Parish Church, is a Church of England parish church in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. There has been a church on the site since the 11th century, but the current building dates from 1836. It is ...

(1903-1904) and Organising Secretary of the Church of England Sunday School Institute (1904-1905), and a second incumbency at St Andrew's, South Brisbane (1906-1911) and then

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

of All Saints',

East St Kilda St Kilda East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Glen Eira and Port Phillip local government areas. St Kilda East recorded a population of ...

(1911-1921) before his ordination to the

episcopate A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

. He retired as bishop in 1938.

Personal life

He married Maud Edith Anderson (1874-1951) in 1898; she was the daughter of the colonial administrator John Gerard Anderson. They had three sons and two daughters. Ashton died on 20 March 1964.Bishop Ashton (Obituaries) ''The Times'' Saturday, Mar 21, 1964; pg. 12; Issue 55966; col A

References

1866 births Anglican bishops of Grafton 20th-century Anglican bishops in Australia 1964 deaths English emigrants to colonial Australia People from Wakefield Alumni of University College, Oxford Clergy from Yorkshire People educated at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield {{Australia-anglican-bishop-stub