Papers of Rev. Andrew A. Bonar (1810-1892)

Scope and Content

The collection is composed of letters, some undated but largely 1835-1891, from Andrew A. Bonar to Elizabeth Somerville, to Alexander N. Somerville, to Ritchie, and to Mrs. Henderson. There is also a letter from Alexander N. Somerville to Bonar, 1835. There are also letters from Bonar to William Bonar, to John J. Bonar, to James Bonar, and to Robert S. Candlish, all from 1839. In addition there is a narrative of enquiries into the condition of the Jews in Palestine and other countries made by the deputation of Ministers of the Church of Scotland in 1839, which was published as Narrative of a mission of inquiry to the Jews from the Church of Scotland in 1839.

Administrative / Biographical History

Andrew A. Bonar was born in Edinburgh on 29 May 1810. He attended the city's Royal High School and in 1831 he entered Divinity Hall. That same year he and others started the Exegetical Society for the purpose of Bible criticism. On finishing his studies in 1835 he began pastoral work in Jedburgh, and in 1836 he became engaged as a missionary assistant to Dr. Robert Smith Candlish in St.George's, in Edinburgh. Bonar was ordained at Collace, Perthshire, in 1838. The following year in 1839 he was part of a Church of Scotland deputation working with Jews in Europe and in Palestine. In 1856 he was working in Finnieston, Glasgow. His publications included, with with Robert Murray McCheyne Narrative of a mission of inquiry to the Jews from the Church of Scotland in 1839, the tract The cup of wrath, Scots worthies, The Brook Besor, The near way to the city, and The Gospel pointing to the Person of Christ. The Rev. Andrew A. Bonar died on 31 December 1892.

Access Information

Generally open for consultation to bona fide researchers, but please contact repository for details in advance.

Note

The biographical/administrative history was compiled using the following material: (1) Andrew A. Bonar. Sermons, addresses and articles. Full-text [online].  Andrew A. Bonar. Biography. [Accessed 23 April 1999].

Compiled by Graeme D Eddie, Edinburgh University Library, Special Collections Division.

Other Finding Aids

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Accruals

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Related Material

The collections at New College also include the Records of the Exegetical Society at MSS EXE