William Henry

William Henry (1770–1859) was an Irish missionary for the London Missionary Society. Early life William Henry was born in Sligo, Ireland in 1770, the son of George and Sarah Henry. He trained as a carpenter and joiner and worked in the Sligo shipyards. As a young man, he joined in the persecution of itinerant Methodist preachers but in 1791 was converted and joined the Calvinistic Methodist group known as the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion. They arranged for Henry's tuition under John Walker, Fellow of Trinity College, Dublin. The Connexion supported the London Missionary Society, founded in 1795 by Thomas Haweis, chaplain to the Countess. The Society purchased the ship Duff and dispatched 30 missionaries to the South Seas in August 1796. All were tradesmen. There were six married missionaries with their families, among them William Henry and his wife Sarah. Tahiti Within a year of arrival, the missionaries became concerned for their safety and left with their families for Sydney where they arrived in May 1798. With James Fleet Cover, William Henry established an itinerant mission based in Parramatta and in 1798-99 preached in the north-western districts of Sydney; Henry's congregation at Kissing Point developed into the congregation of St Anne's.