John Gregorson Campbell
| John Gregorson Campbell | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Born | 1836 Argyll |
| Died | November 1891 (aged 54–55) |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Occupation | Minister |
| Known for | Folklore collection |
John Gregorson Campbell (1836 – 22 November 1891) was a Scottish folklorist and Free Church Minister at the Tiree and Coll parishes in Argyll, Scotland. An avid collector of traditional stories, in 1831 he became Secretary to the Ossianic Society of Glasgow University. Ill health had prevented him taking up employment as a Minister when he was initially approved to preach by the Presbytery of Glasgow in 1858 and later after he was appointed to Tiree by the Duke of Argyll in 1861, parishioners objected to his manner of preaching.
Several of the anecdotes he amassed were published in magazines and, just before his death, work began on collating the first of four compendiums of the tales; three were published a few years after his death. He was fluent in several languages, including Scottish Gaelic, and transcribed the legends precisely as dictated by the narrators.
John Gregorson Campbell was born near Loch Linnhe at Kingairloch, Argyll in 1836, the fourth child and second son of Helen MacGregor and Captain Campbell, an officer for the ship Cygnet. A short memoir, published in 1895 and based on information from Gregorson Campbell's sister, states a Bean Shìth, or fairy washerwoman as Gregorson Campbell defined it, had cast a spell on his father's ancestors proclaiming "they shall grow like the rush and wither like the fern". The family moved to Appin in about 1839, where the local parochial school provided Gregorson Campbell's education until he was ten years old. He then attended a higher school in Glasgow before moving on to the University of Glasgow.
Law was the subject Gregorson Campbell chose to study after completing his education but his primary interest was folklore, a topic that fascinated him from his college days. In 1831 he was appointed Secretary to the Glasgow University Ossianic Society. He secured a licence to preach from the Presbytery of Glasgow in 1858 but was unable to commence work as a clergyman at that time owing to ill health. His recuperation was spent beginning his collection of folklore stories.
...
Wikipedia