JENKINS
,
JENKIN
(d.
1780
),
tutor of Carmarthen Academy
;
nothing is known of his origins or indeed of his career before he entered the Academy at
Llwyn-llwyd
under
Vavasor
Griffiths
(q.v.)
— for that matter, we do not even know when he went there; again, as he did not accompany the Academy when it migrated to
Haverfordwest
(
1741
), we are in the dark as to his further education — it is believed that he went to
Scotland
. But in
1747
(according to the
Cilgwyn church
register — see
Y Cofiadur
,
1923
, 31) he was ordained
pastor
at
Llanfyllin, Mont.
, where he was also
master
of one of
Dr
.
Daniel
Williams
's schools. It is possible (there are other instances) that he had been
pastor
there, though not yet ordained, since
1743
.
Dr.
Abraham
Rees
(q.v.)
and the
painter
Thomas
Jones
(
1742
-
1803
) (q.v.)
were pupils of his at
Llanfyllin
(
Jeremy
,
Presbyterian Fund
, 88). As a
pastor
,
Jenkins
is not well spoken of. In
Nov. 1759
he joined
Samuel
Thomas
(q.v.)
as
tutor
at
Carmarthen Academy
and at the grammar school connected with it. It may indeed be believed that
Jenkins
was at his best as a
schoolmaster
, and particularly as a
classical teacher
, for when, on
Thomas
's resignation (
1764
), the Academy was placed under his care (together, on
Thomas
's death in
1766
, with the pastorate of
Lammas Street
), deterioration set in. He was an
Arian
, and his sermons and theological lectures displeased the orthodox; there were also complaints that the mathematical and philosophical portions of the curriculum were neglected by him — to be sure, he may not have been interested in them, but on the other hand he stubbornly refused to accept a colleague. Further, he was
very hard of hearing
, and according to
Thomas
Morgan
(
1720
-
1799
) (q.v.)
he suffered from ‘
an entire want of pulpit oratory
’; nor was he a good disciplinarian. From
1775
onwards, there were continual
squabbles between him and the
Presbyterian Fund Board
(there are many echoes of these in
Thomas
Morgan
's letter-book,
N.L.W. MS. 5453
), and in
1779
he was removed from office. He afterwards lived in
London
, and d. at
Tottenham Court
28 Nov. 1780
. Since
c.
1773
he had borne the degree of
D.D.
, but of which university is not stated. His two most famous pupils at
Carmarthen
were
David
Davis
of
Castellhywel
and
Thomas
Charles
(qq.v.), and it should be noted that
David
Davis
spoke most highly of him as a
teacher
.
Bibliography:
-
Hanes Eglwysi Annibynnol Cymru
, i, 263, 274;
-
Walter J. Evans
in
Yr Ymofynnydd
,
1900
, 251-5;
-
D. E. Jenkins
,
Life of Thomas Charles
, 1908
, i, 31-7;
-
A History of Carmarthenshire
, 2 vols.,
1935–9
, ii, 239-40;
-
G. D. Owen
,
Ysgolion a Cholegau yr Annibynwyr
,
1939
, 44-8; and the references given above.
Author:
Emeritus Professor Robert Thomas Jenkins, C.B.E., D.Litt., Ll.D.,
F.S.A., (1881-1969), Bangor
