The Rev James Gregory was a former minister of St Andrew’s Parish Church. He was inducted there on 2nd February 1978. (Note others including the Church’s own website incorrectly have this as 1976, which looks to be a typo).
Mr Gregory had been minister at Kirkpatrick Fleming Church and Half Morton Church in Annandale, which had been his first ever charge for 9 years.
Originally from North London, James had spent many years in Scotland. Before becoming a minister he worked with the National Coal Board in Alloa. He graduated at Trinity College at Glasgow University and he moved to Blantyre for the first time at the end of January 1978. He was married with 2 sons, 1 of whom was married at the time James moved to Blantyre.
Rev Gregory’s arrival signalled an end to some of the problems this church had been experiencing. St Andrew’s Church was formed after a largely unsuccessful merger between Stonefield Parish Church, the Burleigh Memorial and Anderson Churches. The previous minister Rev Alexander Buchan left soon after the merger. There had been fears throughout 1977 that another minister was proving difficult to find.
James retired in 1992.
From “Blantyre Explained” by Paul Veverka (c) 2017
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