Charles Oswald Lelean
Encyclopedia
Charles Oswald Lelean was born in 1867 in Tasmania
, Australia
and died at the age of 72 on 14 September 1942. He had spent a considerable part of his life being a missionary
in Fiji
. Rev Lelean served in Fiji for 36 years.
following the St Bartholomew's Day massacre. A little boy by the name of William Lelean was recorded as being the only survivor in his family to make it alive to Cornwall
, United Kingdom
. It appears that he may have been the ancestor of the Leleans in the UK. The name Lelean probably has its roots in the French name, Le Lean. Some members of the family have taken up the French version of the name.
Rev Charles Lelean's great-great-great-grandfather, James Lelean was a contemporary of the great English evangelist, John Wesley
. Rev Wesley had referred to Mr James Lelean as the kind farmer who showed him kindness amongst a hostile mob when he visited Mevagissey
, Cornwall. The Cornish Will Abstracts of 1777 - 1781 however records James Lelean as a fisherman of Mevagissey.
C.O Lelean's grandfather, John moved to Australia in the 1800s.
The early Methodist missions in Fiji served as education centres where students were taught to read and write as well as a rudimentary knowledge of medicine. This laid the foundations of formal education in Fiji. Fijian Methodist Ministers and Catechists were not only instrumental in spreading the Christian Gospel, but were also very effective in showing Fijians the benefits of literacy and proper hygiene.
Rev C.O Lelean spent twenty years of his service in Fiji as Senior Superintendent of the Davuilevu
Mission and principal of the Methodist Theological College from 1914 to 1934.
He succeeded Reverend William Bennett as principal of the Fiji Methodist Theological College which was moved from Navuloa to Davuilevu
in 1907.
Charles Lelean's nephew, Rev Arthur D. Lelean, had the distinction of being the longest serving missionary in Fiji having served in Fiji from 1879 to 1924, a total of 45 years.
n of the Second World War, a school for boys was moved from the Toorak Boys School in Suva and established in 1943 at the Davuilevu
, Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma
compound by Mr William Earnest Donnelly
of New Zealand, the Davuilevu Council instructed Donnelly to name it the Lelean Memorial School
after Reverend Charles Oswald Lelean. Rev C.O Lelean had impacted numerous lives and generations of Fijians through his long and dedicated service and was a much loved minister.
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and died at the age of 72 on 14 September 1942. He had spent a considerable part of his life being a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
in Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. Rev Lelean served in Fiji for 36 years.
History of the Leleans
The Leleans trace their ancestry back to the Huguenots who fled FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
following the St Bartholomew's Day massacre. A little boy by the name of William Lelean was recorded as being the only survivor in his family to make it alive to Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It appears that he may have been the ancestor of the Leleans in the UK. The name Lelean probably has its roots in the French name, Le Lean. Some members of the family have taken up the French version of the name.
Rev Charles Lelean's great-great-great-grandfather, James Lelean was a contemporary of the great English evangelist, John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
. Rev Wesley had referred to Mr James Lelean as the kind farmer who showed him kindness amongst a hostile mob when he visited Mevagissey
Mevagissey
Mevagissey is a village, fishing port and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately five miles south of St Austell....
, Cornwall. The Cornish Will Abstracts of 1777 - 1781 however records James Lelean as a fisherman of Mevagissey.
C.O Lelean's grandfather, John moved to Australia in the 1800s.
The Leleans in Fiji
Rev C.O Lelean married Edith Annie Shoebridge on April 1897 in Bushy Park, Tasmania, daughter of William Ebenezer Shoebridge and Anne Benson Mather. They had one daughter, Ella Lelean. Edith Lelean died in Fiji on 15 May 1906.The early Methodist missions in Fiji served as education centres where students were taught to read and write as well as a rudimentary knowledge of medicine. This laid the foundations of formal education in Fiji. Fijian Methodist Ministers and Catechists were not only instrumental in spreading the Christian Gospel, but were also very effective in showing Fijians the benefits of literacy and proper hygiene.
Rev C.O Lelean spent twenty years of his service in Fiji as Senior Superintendent of the Davuilevu
Davuilevu
Davuilevu, the name of the site upon which three Methodist Church of Fiji institutions are located, can be translated as "the large conch shell"....
Mission and principal of the Methodist Theological College from 1914 to 1934.
He succeeded Reverend William Bennett as principal of the Fiji Methodist Theological College which was moved from Navuloa to Davuilevu
Davuilevu
Davuilevu, the name of the site upon which three Methodist Church of Fiji institutions are located, can be translated as "the large conch shell"....
in 1907.
Charles Lelean's nephew, Rev Arthur D. Lelean, had the distinction of being the longest serving missionary in Fiji having served in Fiji from 1879 to 1924, a total of 45 years.
Lelean Memorial School
When, due to the military needs of the Pacific CampaigPacific Campaign
Pacific Campaign may refer to:* Pacific Campaign , fighting between the United States and Spain during the Spanish-American War...
n of the Second World War, a school for boys was moved from the Toorak Boys School in Suva and established in 1943 at the Davuilevu
Davuilevu
Davuilevu, the name of the site upon which three Methodist Church of Fiji institutions are located, can be translated as "the large conch shell"....
, Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma
Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma
The Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma is the largest Christian denomination in Fiji, with 36.2 percent of the total population at the 1996 census...
compound by Mr William Earnest Donnelly
William Earnest Donnelly
William Earnest Donnelly was a New Zealander, who became a teacher and General Secretary of the Students’ Christian Movement in New Zealand, in the early 1930s and early 40s...
of New Zealand, the Davuilevu Council instructed Donnelly to name it the Lelean Memorial School
Lelean Memorial School
Lelean Memorial School is one of the largest co-ed schools in Fiji today. It was established in 1943 and is run by the Methodist Church of Fiji. It is co-located at the Davuilevu Methodist Compound with the and the Young People's Department, which runs training for Methodist catechists...
after Reverend Charles Oswald Lelean. Rev C.O Lelean had impacted numerous lives and generations of Fijians through his long and dedicated service and was a much loved minister.