Rev William Niven Aitken

1910 - 1962  (~ 52 years)

• Name	William Niven Aitken
  Prefix	Rev
  Born	22 Mar 1910	Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	15 Aug 1936  [1]
  	Bank Clerk
  Residence	22 Nov 1939	56 Corstorphine Road, Edinburgh, Scotland   [1]
  Residence	1941	Hillview Road, Corstorphine, Midlothian, Scotland   [1]
  Residence	14 Apr 1948	Baptist Manse, Burra Island, Shetland Isles, Scotland   [1]
  _UID	3C2C1F00B21842819583F16ABDCCFDFF0CC9
  Buried	26 Nov 1962	Oshawa, Ontario, Canada   [1]
  Person ID	I7242	My Big Tree
  Last Modified	28 Nov 2010

  
  

  Father	Robert Aitken,   b. 13 Sep 1864, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland ,   d. 30 Apr 1937, 51 Lauder Road, Edinburgh, Mid Lothian, Scotland  (Age 72 years)
  Mother	Anne Young Niven,   b. 6 Oct 1867, Beth Rd, Dundee, Scotland ,   d. 30 Dec 1923, 19 Great King Street, Edinburgh, Scotland  (Age 56 years)
  Married	21 Sep 1896	121 Rose St, Edinburgh, Mid Lothian, Scotland
  Family ID	F2338	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Jemima Oman Wood,   b. 31 Oct 1904, Portobello, Midlothian, Scotland ,   d. 27 Oct 1979  (Age 74 years)
  Married	15 Aug 1936	Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland   [1]
  Children	1. Living   2. Living   3. Living
  Last Modified	26 Dec 2007
  Family ID	F2817	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  When WWII came along William signed on as a conscientious objector and so was detailed to work in a bomb disposal unit and was stationed at Horsham, Sussex, for at least part of the time. About 1942 there was a desperate shortage of coal so he went down the mines. After the war William returned to banking before feeling the call to the Baptist ministry. He did much of his theological training through correspondence courses with London University whilst still working in the bank. His first pastoral charge was in the Shetland Islands and it was here that his son Ronald was born. Pastoring at Burra Isle Baptist Church he bought an old army jeep and converted it into a bus for church use. That vehicle plus the nurse's car and the butcher's van were the only vehicles on the island. There was no electricity and no modern conveniences on the island. Despite this the family loved the experience of living there. It must have been quite a culture shock after living in Edinburgh. His next call was to the ship building town of Jarrow in north east England, where he was the minister of Grange Road Baptist church. After 5 years there he was back in Scotland at John Knox Street Baptist Church in Glasgow. Three years later, in 1957, he was called to Canada. He accepted a call to Canada arriving in Nova Scotia in March 1957 he was called to a two point charge in Yarmouth County, south western NS. William loved the area and swore he would retire to the area. But this was not to be. In 1959 the family moved to a ministry in Oshwa, Ontario. He was only there three short years before succumbing to a heart attack.

  
  

• Sources

  [S77] Terry Stewart (Reliability: 3).