William O'Bryan
William O’Bryan aka William Bryant (6 February 1778 - 8 January 1868) was a Methodist preacher and founder of the Bible Christian movement.
He was born at Gunwen, Luxulyan, Cornwall. In 1815 he changed his surname to O'Bryan, wishing to adopt Irish ancestry, and the branch became known as "Bryanites". His movement spread mainly through North Cornwall, Padstow and Bude, Launcells etc. Between 1831 and 1862 Bryant (now O'Bryan) crossed the Atlantic 13 times, preaching to North Americans, but failed to establish a church.
The first Bible Christian chapel was built in Shebbear, Devon in 1817.
He married Catherine Cowlin on 9 July 1803; they had two sons and six daughters.
Reading
- Harmon, Nolan B., general ed. (1974) Encyclopedia of World Methodism
- Lewis, Donald M., ed. (1995) Dictionary of Evangelical Biography 1739-1860
- Shaw, Thomas (1965) The Bible Christians 1815-1907. London: Epworth Press
- Shaw, Thomas (1967) A History of Cornish Methodism. Truro: Bradford Barton; pp. 88–92
External links
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