The Reverend John Pringle was a Presbyterian minister who came to Skagway in 1898 and went on to build the first hospital, St. Andrews, in Atlin 1900.
Pringle was born in 1852 but died on this day April 20, 1935 in British Columbia.
His brother George was also a Presbyterian Minister (who married Klondike Kate to her husband) and his brother James was a Sergeant with the NWMP who delivered mail from Dawson to Skagway. His sister Lucy worked as a nurse in the Atlin Hospital in 1922.
Quite a family!
The picture above taken by Anton Vogee in 1899 shows Pringle, perhaps his sister and the Presbyterian Church in Atlin.
explorenorth.com; Mitchum p 81; Klondike Mission, Sinclair; Mills; Yukon site
Hello,
I am a writer/researcher and am working on a book called Literary Landmarks of Cambridge. I’d be interested in using the photograph by Anton Vogee in 1899 showing Rev. George C.F. Pringle and his sister at the Presbyterian Church.
Can I purchase or obtain a copy for use in the book?
Kind Regards, David Menary
Hi, sorry I cannot remember where I got the photo, it is from one of my sources, I do not own it. Good luck in your work. – Marlene
Hi Marlene, great page and site. I’m also interested in the origins of the John Pringle photo. Has the source who contributed it come to mind? Do you have any other John Pringle photos? Many thanks if you can help. John Nadler
Rev. John Pringle 1852-1935 and Mary Cowan’s son Rev. George Charles Fraser Pringle 1874-1949 wrote several books, including ‘Tillicums of the Trail”, 1922. In early 1900 George was sent to Atlin to replace John while he was on a lecture tour for Home Missions. George returned that fall to Queen’s College in Kingston and took his first year in Theology. He was persuaded to head back north in the spring of 1901. He travelled down the Yukon River to Dawson City and then out to the Klondike Gold Fields where he made his headquarters at the mouth of Gold Bottom Creek. In August 1902 Pringle was ordained at St. Andrew’s Church in Dawson City. He served the people in a 200 mile radius, Gold Bottom being the centre, until August 1910. He then ministered in a number of churches in southern British Columbia. On April 17, 1912 George Pringle married Grace Marguerite Bell, in Vernon. In August 1916 he went overseas as a chaplain and after the war he studied Theology and Social Economics for a year in Edinburgh, Scotland. Pringle returned to Canada to take charge of the Loggers Mission on the west coast of British Columbia. The Pringles, with their two small children, settled on Texada Island in 1920. For the next 9 years he travelled up and down the coast by boat, called the “Sky Pilot”, ministering to about 75 logging camps and settlements. In 1929 the family moved to Victoria and then to Vancouver. George Pringle died in 1949 and is buried at Mountain View Cemetery. George’s eldest son George Robert Pringle 1914-1943 was RCAF observer/navigator who died in a non-operational flight during World War II. Rev. Pringle and his wife had two other children Mary Elizabeth Jamieson and John Bell Pringle.
These Pringles are descendants of the Pringles of Earlston, Berwickshire, Scotland.
At Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island, there is a park and junior camp given as a memorial to George, and it was named “The George
Pringle Memorial Park”, now “Camp Pringle”.
Sources: Collections Canada; BC Vital Records; Mountain View Cemetery; Canadian Virtual War Memorial; and the family records of H. S. Pringle 1873-1950 Victoria, B.C.
My previous comment first sentence is in error…
Correctly, it should read:
“The youngest brother of the Rev. John Pringle (1852-1935), the Rev. George Charles Fraser Pringle 1874-1949 wrote several books…. etc. … ”
Their father was George McDonald Pringle (1818-1900)
born a twin in Edinburgh Scotland. He was a member of the Halifax Rifle Brigade and took part in the Fenian Raids in 1866. He was occupied as a shoemaker and lived in Galt, Ontario
Their mother was Mary Cowan (1829-1915) who was born in Prince Edward Island, the daughter of John Cowan and Mary Clow..