Thomas Baker (missionary)
Encyclopedia
The Reverend Thomas Baker (1832-67) was a Methodist missionary in Fiji
, known as being the last missionary in that country to be killed and eaten, along with seven of his Fijian followers. The incident occurred in the Navosa Highlands of western Viti Levu
in July 1867, and the axe used to kill Baker is still displayed in the village of Nabutatau. His boiled shoe is in Fiji Museum
in Suva.
Thomas Baker was born at Playden
, Sussex on 6 February 1832. Baker's father, Jeremiah, was a carpenter and in 1838, despite his wife's feelings, took the family to New South Wales, arriving at Port Jackson
on 17 March 1839.
He married Harriet Moon and was accepted as a probationary minister in February 1859 to be sent to a mission field.
Baker was commissioned to Fiji on 5 April 1859 and arrived there with his wife a month later. After being in Fiji for six years, he settled his family into the new Methodist mission station at Davuilevu
on the Rewa River.
In July 1867 Baker led a party to spread the gospel in the heathen interior of Viti Levu, passing through the Taukei ni Waluvu
's Christian enclave on the east bank of the Wainimala river. In Methodist folklore, the tabua (whale's tooth) sealing the plot to ambush the party had preceded him along the non-Christian west bank of the Wainimala river.
Baker was killed along with seven other Fijian Christian workers. The Fijians that were cannibalised with Baker were, Setareki Seileka, Sisa Tuilekutu, Navitalai Torau, Nemani Raqio, Taniela Batirerega, Josefata Tabuakarawa and Setareki Nadu. Two men, Aisea and Josefa Nagata escaped the massacre. After Baker's death, Davuilevu mission was temporarily closed in 1868.
In 2003, Baker's relatives visited the village for a traditional matanigasau reconciliation ceremony. This was offered in apology for the killing by descendants of Reverend Baker's slayers.
The story of Baker's death is the basis for Jack London
's short story The Whale Tooth.
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, known as being the last missionary in that country to be killed and eaten, along with seven of his Fijian followers. The incident occurred in the Navosa Highlands of western Viti Levu
Viti Levu
Viti Levu is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji, the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population.- Geography and economy :...
in July 1867, and the axe used to kill Baker is still displayed in the village of Nabutatau. His boiled shoe is in Fiji Museum
Fiji Museum
The Fiji Museum is a museum in Suva, Fiji located in the capital city's botanical gardens, Thurston Gardens.The museum houses an extensive archaeological collection dating back 3,700 years and relics of Fiji's indigenous cultural history...
in Suva.
Thomas Baker was born at Playden
Playden
Playden is a village and civil parish in the Rother District of East Sussex, England. The village is located one mile north-west of Rye. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book; it is a largely rural parish, having no village centre, and the hamlet of Houghton Green is included in the parish...
, Sussex on 6 February 1832. Baker's father, Jeremiah, was a carpenter and in 1838, despite his wife's feelings, took the family to New South Wales, arriving at Port Jackson
Port Jackson
Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...
on 17 March 1839.
He married Harriet Moon and was accepted as a probationary minister in February 1859 to be sent to a mission field.
Baker was commissioned to Fiji on 5 April 1859 and arrived there with his wife a month later. After being in Fiji for six years, he settled his family into the new Methodist mission station at Davuilevu
Davuilevu
Davuilevu, the name of the site upon which three Methodist Church of Fiji institutions are located, can be translated as "the large conch shell"....
on the Rewa River.
In July 1867 Baker led a party to spread the gospel in the heathen interior of Viti Levu, passing through the Taukei ni Waluvu
Taukei ni Waluvu
Taukei ni Waluvu is the Fijian picturesque phrase for "Native of the Flood." It is the traditional chiefly title of the warrior hill clan Siko-Natabutale of Nairukuruku village. The history of the clan from the mid- nineteenth century, represent the social structures of the chiefly...
's Christian enclave on the east bank of the Wainimala river. In Methodist folklore, the tabua (whale's tooth) sealing the plot to ambush the party had preceded him along the non-Christian west bank of the Wainimala river.
Baker was killed along with seven other Fijian Christian workers. The Fijians that were cannibalised with Baker were, Setareki Seileka, Sisa Tuilekutu, Navitalai Torau, Nemani Raqio, Taniela Batirerega, Josefata Tabuakarawa and Setareki Nadu. Two men, Aisea and Josefa Nagata escaped the massacre. After Baker's death, Davuilevu mission was temporarily closed in 1868.
In 2003, Baker's relatives visited the village for a traditional matanigasau reconciliation ceremony. This was offered in apology for the killing by descendants of Reverend Baker's slayers.
The story of Baker's death is the basis for Jack London
Jack London
John Griffith "Jack" London was an American author, journalist, and social activist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction alone...
's short story The Whale Tooth.