William Knibb

William Knibb, English Baptist minister and Jamaican missionary (died 1845)

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Born: September 7, 1803
Died: November 15, 1845
Zodiac sign: Virgo
Birth year: 1803

About William Knibb

William Knibb, OM (7 September 1803 in Kettering – 15 November 1845) was an English Baptist minister and missionary to Jamaica. He is chiefly known today for his work to free enslaved Africans. In 1988, on the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the British Empire, Knibb was posthumously awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit. He was the first white male to receive the country's highest civil honour. == Early life == William was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire. His father was a tradesman, Thomas Knibb, and his mother, Mary (née Dexter) was active in the local independent church. His parents had eight children, the eldest, also named Thomas being born on 11 October 1799. William was their fifth child, along with his sister, Ann. Knibb's elder brother Thomas was a missionary-schoolmaster in Jamaica. When Thomas died at 24, William volunteered to replace him.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

Together they were following the pioneering work of the African preacher George Lisle, a former slave from Virginia who had arrived in 1782 and founded a Baptist church in Kingston.
The Baptists in Jamaica were founded by freed slaves, notably George Lisle, who sought support and finance for schools and chapels from nonconformists abroad, particularly from the English Baptist movement, which William Knibb contributed to.

William Knibb timeline

1782Together they were following the pioneering work of the African preacher George Lisle, a former slave from Virginia who had arrived in 1782 and founded a Baptist church in Kingston.
1988In 1988, on the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the British Empire, Knibb was posthumously awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit.

The world when William Knibb was born

William Knibb was born in 1803. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Headlines and milestones

Top headlineLouisiana Purchase doubles size of the US
Technology milestoneFirst practical steam locomotive by Trevithick
World population~915M

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderThomas Jefferson
U.S. population5.9M

1803 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in William Knibb's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1803	2026
Population	5.9M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

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