William Henry Roberts
Encyclopedia
William Henry Roberts was a Baptist
minister from the United States
who worked for many years as a missionary in Burma.
Roberts was born on 25 October 1847, in Botetourt Springs, Virginia
.
He studied at Roanoke College
and Richmond College (now the University of Richmond
), then went on to the Northern Baptist Theological Seminary
in Chicago
.
He served under General Robert E. Lee
with the Army of Northern Virginia
during the American Civil War
.
Roberts became a missionary supported by the American Baptist Missionary Union
, working among the Kachin people
around Bhamo
and Myitkyina
from 1879 until 1913.
On his arrival in Burma, Roberts obtained grudging permission from the Burmese king, Thibaw Min
, to build a school and educate the Kachins. The king, a devout Bhuddist, granted Roberts "land the size of a buffalo skin".
Roberts bought a buffalo skin, cut it into thin strips and used it to measure out the mission compound.
Although his wife soon died from Malaria
, Roberts was to carry out his mission for 34 years. His daughter, Dora, and his son-in-law, John E. Cummings, also became missionaries to Burma.
Roberts was followed by the Swedish-American missionary Ola Hanson
, who arrived in 1890 and did much work in compiling a grammar and dictionary for their Jinghpaw language, and in translating hymns and the Bible into Jingpaw. In 1892 George J. Geis
arrived, establishing a mission at Myitkyina
, to the North of Bhamo.
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
minister from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
who worked for many years as a missionary in Burma.
Roberts was born on 25 October 1847, in Botetourt Springs, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
.
He studied at Roanoke College
Roanoke College
Roanoke College is an private, coeducational, four-year liberal-arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The college is located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia...
and Richmond College (now the University of Richmond
University of Richmond
The University of Richmond is a selective, private, nonsectarian, liberal arts university located on the border of the city of Richmond and Henrico County, Virginia. The University of Richmond is a primarily undergraduate, residential university with approximately 4,000 undergraduate and graduate...
), then went on to the Northern Baptist Theological Seminary
Northern Baptist Theological Seminary
Northern Baptist Theological Seminary is a seminary located in Lombard, Illinois, USA, near Chicago. It was founded in 1913 by the Second Baptist Church of Chicago to prepare students for church leadership, and it continues to represent a theologically conservative alternative within its...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
He served under General Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
with the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Roberts became a missionary supported by the American Baptist Missionary Union
American Baptist Missionary Union
American Baptist Missionary Union is an international Protestant Christian missionary society founded in 1814 in the United States...
, working among the Kachin people
Kachin people
The Kachin people are a group of ethnic groups who largely inhabit the Kachin Hills in northern Burma's Kachin State and neighbouring areas of China and India. More than half of the Kachin people identify themselves as Christians - while a significant minority follow Buddhism and some also adhere...
around Bhamo
Bhamo
Bhamo is a city of Kachin State in northernmost part of Myanmar, located 186 km south from the capital city of Myitkyina. It is on the Ayeyarwady River. It lies within 65 km of the border with Yunnan Province, China. The population consists of Chinese and Shan, with Kachin peoples in...
and Myitkyina
Myitkyina
Myitkyina is the capital city of Kachin State in Myanmar , located from Yangon, and from Mandalay. In Burmese it means "near the big river", and in fact "Myitkyina" lies on the west bank of the Ayeyarwady River, just below from Myit-son of its two headstreams...
from 1879 until 1913.
On his arrival in Burma, Roberts obtained grudging permission from the Burmese king, Thibaw Min
Thibaw Min
Thibaw Min was the last king of the Konbaung dynasty of Burma . His reign ended when Burma was defeated by the forces of the British Empire in the Third Anglo-Burmese War, on 29 November 1885, prior to its official annexation on 1 January 1886....
, to build a school and educate the Kachins. The king, a devout Bhuddist, granted Roberts "land the size of a buffalo skin".
Roberts bought a buffalo skin, cut it into thin strips and used it to measure out the mission compound.
Although his wife soon died from Malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
, Roberts was to carry out his mission for 34 years. His daughter, Dora, and his son-in-law, John E. Cummings, also became missionaries to Burma.
Roberts was followed by the Swedish-American missionary Ola Hanson
Ola hanson
Ola Hanson was a Swedish-American missionary who worked for the Kachin people in Burma....
, who arrived in 1890 and did much work in compiling a grammar and dictionary for their Jinghpaw language, and in translating hymns and the Bible into Jingpaw. In 1892 George J. Geis
George J. Geis
The Reverend George J. Geis was an American Baptist minister and anthropologist of German descent, best known for his missionary work in northeastern Burma...
arrived, establishing a mission at Myitkyina
Myitkyina
Myitkyina is the capital city of Kachin State in Myanmar , located from Yangon, and from Mandalay. In Burmese it means "near the big river", and in fact "Myitkyina" lies on the west bank of the Ayeyarwady River, just below from Myit-son of its two headstreams...
, to the North of Bhamo.