Josiah Miller (1832 – 1880) was an English Congregationalist minister and hymnologist.

Life

The son of the Rev. Edward Miller, he was born at

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, on 8 April 1832. At age 13 he was articled to an engineering surveyor at

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

; but he later gave up his articles and entered

Highbury College Highbury College is a further education college in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. It offers vocational and academic education and training, including apprenticeships, A-levels and foundation degrees. The college is a member of the Collab G ...

, where he studied for the independent ministry. He graduated B.A. in 1853 and M.A. in 1855 at London University. He was appointed pastor successively at Dorchester in 1855, at

Long Sutton, Lincolnshire Long Sutton is a market town in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies in The Fens, close to the Wash, east of Spalding. History Long Sutton belonged historically to the wapentake of Elloe in the Parts of Holland. A fl ...

, in 1860, and at Newark, Nottinghamshire, in 1868. He gave up this last post in order to become secretary of the

British Society for the Propagation of the Gospel Among the Jews The British Society for Propagating the Gospel Among the Jews founded London 1842, was the Presbyterian and dissenting churches' counterpart to the Anglican London Society for Promoting Christianity Among the Jews (founded 1809, today CMJ). The two ...

. Subsequently he succeeded the Rev. J. Robinson as secretary to the

London City Mission London City Mission was set up by David Nasmith on 16 May 1835 in the Hoxton area of east London. The first paid missionary was Lindsay Burfoot. Today it is part of the wider City Mission Movement. History The London City Mission's early work ce ...

. He died on 22 December 1880, and was buried at

Abney Park Abney Park is in Stoke Newington, London, England. It is a park dating from just before 1700, named after Lady Abney, the wife of Sir Thomas Abney, Lord Mayor of London in 1700 and one of the first directors of the Bank of England and associat ...

Works

His principal works are: * ‘Our Hymns: their Authors and Origin. Being Biographical Sketches of the principal Psalm and Hymn Writers (with Notes on their Psalms and Hymns),’ London, 1866; intended to be a companion to the New Congregational Hymn Book. * ‘Our Dispensation: or, the place we occupy in the Divine History of the World,’ London, 1868. * ‘Singers and Songs of the Church; being Biographical Sketches of the Hymn-Writers in all the principal collections,’ 2nd edit. London, 1869. * ‘Christianum Organum; or, the Inductive Method in Scripture and Science. With an Introduction by J. H. Gladstone,’ London, 1870.

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Josiah 1832 births 1880 deaths English Congregationalists Hymnologists 19th-century musicologists