George Murray Reith (Reverend) (b. 1863–d. 27 February 1948, Edinburgh, Scotland) was a minister of the Singapore Presbyterian Church. He is better known as the author of Handbook to Singapore. First published in 1892, Handbook to Singapore was one of Singapore’s earliest tourist guidebooks.1
Early life
Reith was the eldest son of Archibald Reith.2 After obtaining his master of arts degree at the Aberdeen University in 1884, he pursued further education at New College, Edinburgh, Scotland.3
Reith assisted at the Dundee McCheyne Memorial before he was ordained at the Free Church Presbytery in London.4 In 1889, he was posted to Singapore, where he served as a minister of the Singapore Presbyterian Church from 1889 to 1896.5
Presbyterian minister
Reith was the eighth minister since the Presbyterian community was established in Singapore in 1856.6 Besides preaching at the Presbyterian church and the Boustead Institute every Sunday, Reith also lectured on Scottish church history and biblical criticism.7
His sermons included discussions of social issues such as working on Sundays and problems associated with gambling at horse races.8 Nicknamed the Presbyterian Padre, likely after his book Padre in Partibus (1897), Reith was succeeded by Reverend S. S. Walker in 1896, following which he returned to Edinburgh.9
Community contributions
Besides serving as a preacher and minister in Singapore, Reith was also a founding member of the Straits Philosophical Society, as well as a committee member of the Straits Settlements Association, Straits Asiatic Society, Raffles Institution and Raffles Library.10 He also gave direction to the local Theological Society, which held monthly meetings.11
The community in Singapore gave Reith a silver inkstand as a parting gift when he returned to Scotland in 1897.12 However, he remained active in the local community even after his departure, contributing frequently to the local press with writings on Scottish affairs for the local Scots community. This continued well into 1910.13
Reith is known for his publication, Handbook to Singapore, which was first published in 189214 and subsequently revised by Walter Makepeace in 1907.15 The title was reissued by the Oxford University Press in 1985.16
Life in Scotland
After his return to Scotland, Reith was appointed in 1898 as the minister of St Cuthbert’s United Free Church in Edinburgh.17
In 1910, Reith published a photographic survey and description of the Scottish highlands titled The Breezy Pentlands.18 He also served as editor for the Proceedings and Debates of the General Assembly of the United Free Church in Great Britain from 1900.19
Reith resigned from St Cuthbert in 1911 due to poor health. Between 1916 and 1917, he served as minister of the Baird United Free Church in Cumbernauld, Glasgow.20
Published works (books)
1892: Handbook to Singapore
1897: A Padre in Partibus: Being Notes and Impressions of a Brief Holiday Tour through Java, the Eastern Archipelago and Siam21
1898: Dr Archibald Reith: Biography and Selections from His Writings22
1910: The Breezy Pentlands23
1933: Reminiscences of the United Free Church General Assembly (1900–1929)24
Family
Father: Archibald Reith25
Wife: Mary McNeill Bowie (m. 1907), daughter of Reverend John S. Bowie.26
The couple had four sons.27
Author
Bonny Tan
References
1. Trustees of the National Library of Scotland, “Inventory: Acc.3564: Papers of the Rev George M Reith,” accessed 10 October 2023, http://www.nls.uk/catalogues/online/cnmi/inventories/acc3564.pdf; “Classified Adverts: Death,” Singapore Free Press, 11 March 1948, 8; “Padre’s Guide to S’pore Was First Ever,” Straits Times, 1 October 1960, 6. (From NewspaperSG)
2. “Classified Adverts: Death.”
3. Trustees, “Inventory: Acc.3564: Papers.”
4. “Single Person Record Details,” Scottish Archive Network Limited, accessed 10 October 2023, http://catalogue.nrscotland.gov.uk/scancatalogue/person.aspx?code=NA8646.
5. Trustees, “Inventory: Acc.3564: Papers”; “The New Presbyterian Minister,” Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), 31 March 1896, 2. (From NewspaperSG)
6. “The Presbyterian Church,” Straits Times, 2 March 1928, 11. (From NewspaperSG)
7. “The Presbyterian Church. Singapore,” Straits Times, 2 March 1893, 3; Mr. Reith’s Lectures,” Straits Times Weekly Issue, 12 April 1892, 214. (From NewspaperSG)
8. “The Rev. Mr. Reith on Sunday Labour,” Straits Times, 21 September 1891, 2; “The Rev. Mr. Reith on Gambling,” Straits Times, 19 October 1891, 3. (From NewspaperSG)
9. “The Rev. G. M. Reith,” Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (Weekly), 3 March 1896, 9; “The New Presbyterian Minister” (From NewspaperSG); Bonny Tan, “Early Tourist Guidebooks to Singapore: The Handbook to Singapore (1892),” BiblioAsia 6, no. 1 (April 2010)
10. “The Rev. G. M. Reith.”
11. “The Presbyterian Church. Singapore.”
12. “The Rev. Mr. Reith,” Straits Times, 30 August 1897, 2. (From NewspaperSG)
13. “Rev. G. M. Reith as an Author,” Straits Times, 27 July 1910, 11. (From NewspaperSG)
14. George Murray Reith, Handbook to Singapore: With Map and a Plan of the Botanical Gardens (Singapore: Singapore and Straits Print. Office, 1892). (From National Library Online)
15. George Murray Reith, Handbook to Singapore with Map (Singapore: Fraser and Neave, 1907). (Microfilms NL 24341; NL 30196)
16. George Murray Reith, Handbook to Singapore (Singapore; New York: Oxford University Press, 1985) (Call no. RSING 957.57 REI-[HIS]); Irene Hoe, “Fascinating Flaws,” Straits Times, 10 August 1985, 2. (From NewspaperSG)
17. Scottish Archive Network Limited, “Single Person Record Details”; “Personalia,” Aberdeen University Review 3, no. 7 (November 1915): 275, https://archive.org/details/aberdeenuniversi03univuoft.
18. “Rev. G. M. Reith as an Author.”
19. “Personalia,” 275.
20. Scottish Archive Network Limited, “Single Person Record Details”; “Personalia,” 275.
21. George Murray Reith, A Padre in Partibus: Being Notes and Impressions of a Brief Holiday Tour through Java, Eastern Archipelago and Siam (Singapore: Singapore and Straits Print. Office, 1897) (Microfilm NL 5829); “Now Ready, A Padre in Partibus,” Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), 18 August 1897, 2. (From NewspaperSG)
22. G. M. Reith, Dr. Archibald Reith: Biography and Selections from His Writings (Aberdeen: W. Jolly, 1898)
23. “The Breezy Pentlands,” Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (Weekly), 2 June 1910, 5. (From NewspaperSG)
24. G. M. Reith, Reminiscences of the United Free Church General Assembly (1900–1929) (Edinburgh: Moray Press, 1933)
25. Page 8 Advertisements Column 1: Death.
26. “Marriages,” Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (Weekly), 28 November 1907, 1. (From NewspaperSG)
27. Scottish Archive Network Limited, “Single Person Record Details.”
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