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Dictionary of Miramichi Biography

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WOOD, ENOCH (1803-1888)

WOOD, ENOCH, Methodist missionary, Miramichi circuit, 1831-33; bap. Gainsborough, England, 10 Dec 1803, s/o William Wood and h/w Sarah; m. 2nd, 1829, Caroline Matilda Merritt, of Saint John; d. Toronto, 31 Jan 1888.

Enoch Wood was educated in his hometown in England, where he was a schoolmate and friend of the English Chartist, Thomas Cooper. In 1826 he entered the Methodist ministry and was assigned to missionary duties in the West Indies. After serving at Montserrat and St Christopher for three years he was transferred to Saint John, N.B., in 1830.

Wood's next assignment was on the Miramichi, as successor to the Rev. Michael Pickles, and he arrived to take up his responsibilities in June 1831. As superintendent of the mission, he was stationed at Chatham, while his assistants, the Rev. Arthur McNutt (1831-32), and the probationer Henry Daniel (1832-33), spent the bulk of their time in outlying communities, as far afield as Doaktown, Bathurst, and Richibucto.

Before the Rev. Mr Pickles came to the Miramichi in 1830, steps had been taken by Robert Morrow and others to have Methodist meeting houses erected, and early in Wood's term the first churches were dedicated at Chatham (31 July 1831) and Newcastle (7 August 1831). It also fell to Wood to carry through on the moves made by Pickles towards the conversion of Robert Cooney and his acceptance into the Methodist ministry.

When he left the Miramichi in 1833, Wood went to Fredericton, and the rest of his ministry in New Brunswick was split between Fredericton and Saint John. In 1847 he was called to Toronto as superintendent of missions for the Methodist Church of Canada. He later occupied the highest offices in the church, including the presidency for several terms. In 1860 Victoria University honored him with a DD degree.

Wood's first wife, whose name is not known, died in the West Indies in 1828. He and his second wife, Caroline M. Merritt, had eleven children.

Sources

[bap] LDS-IGI [m/d] DCB / Cooney (A); Cornish; Gleaner 31 May 1831, 2 Aug 1831, 16 Aug 1831, 29 May 1832; Johnson; Smith

Notes

The LDS-IGI shows a child (or children) named Enock Wood bap. 13 Feb 1802 and 10 Dec 1803, s/o William Wood and h/w Sarah, Gainsborough, England.


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