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GORDON FORLONG
Born 14th February 1819 - Died 30th August 1908
The second son of William Forlong, he was born in Pollock Castle, Renfrewshire, Scotland, on 14th February 1819, and died on 30th August 1908. He married firstly Laura Isabella Anstey, who died in 1854, and by whom he had two daughters:
1 Clara Laura, who married Stephen Jacob.
2 Amy, who married Alfred Blomfield.
In 1856 he marrie seondly Elizabeth Anna Houlton, daughter of Dr J Houlton, President of the Royal Philosophical Society in London. With her he had eleven children, seven of whom survived:
1 H G Forlong, a dentist of Wanganui.
2 D G Forlong, farmer of Maxwelltown
3 P G Forlong, land agent of Wanganui.
4 C Forlong, who married ----- D'Oylcy Snow of Palmerston N.
He passed into the Scottish bar in 1842 and was an advocate practising in the Supreme Court. He was one of the leaders in the great religious revival in the South of Scotland in 1860 amd 1865. On going to England he bult a large iron church known as the Talbot Tabernacle in West London capable of accomodating 1600 people. He preached there for 8 years, before leaving for New Zealand on account of ill health. He left England with his family on 2nd May 1876 before arriving at Wellington in August of that year. He initially farmed in Rangitikci before goujng to Dunedin in 1880 where he took up evangelistic work. About 1885 he moved to Wanganui before finally moving to Robgotea some three years before his death. He was a distinguished Greek and Hebrew scholar.
Source:
Obituary in the Wanganui Herald of 1908.