William O’Bryan
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William O’Bryan aka William Bryant (1778 - 1868) was a Methodist preacher and founder of the Bible Christian movement.
He was born at Gunwen, Luxulyan, Cornwall. In 1815 he changed his surname to O'Bryan, wishing to adopt Irish ancestry and the branch became known as "Bryanites". His movement spread mainly through North Cornwall, Padstow and Bude, Launcells etc. Between 1831 and 1862 Bryant (now O'Bryan) crossed the Atlantic 13 times, spreading Bible Christians to North America.
The first Bible christian chapel was built in Shebbear, Devon in 1817.
[edit] Reading
- A History of Cornish Methodism, 88-92. Rev. Thomas Shaw. (1967).
- Dictionary of Evangelical Biography 1739-1860, edited by Donald M. Lewis. (1995)
- Encyclopedia of World Methodism (1974),