Person:Hugh Croskery (2)

Anecdote* 1 November 1966 Kingston, The Kingston Roundabout

    The Reverend Dr Hugh Croskery, MRCSI, JP, RN, studied medicine and received a medical 

degree. Thereafter, he served as a Naval Surgeon in the British Navy.(S3) Later, in 1859,(S4) Hugh moved to Jamaica where he took the position of a District Medical Officer. After studying for the ministry, he was ordained an Anglican priest and served under his father-in-law, the Rev. Charles Hall. He wrote 'The gospel of the kingdom, a vade-mecum of texts and prayers of intercession' (1877) which has an introduction by the Bishop of Jamaica, an excerpt of which reads: "The district of Chapelton, in Jamaica, lies amid the interior mountains of a tropical island, over which the residences of the peasantry are scattered far and wide. The Rector is no longer young. His most remote station is at a distance of more than twenty miles from his residence, to be traversed, for the most part, bu a bridle path, narrow, steep and rugged." (The Rev. Hugh had one servant accompanying him, and they travelled by donkey.)

    At his death, Hugh was buried in the family cemetery at Half Way Tree, Kingston, Jamaica.(S3) In the following excerpt, H.P. Jacobs gave an account about Hugh in a broadcast on RJR 

(Radio Jamaica, Ltd.) on 1 November 1966:(S4)

    "There is no trace now of the old house at 85 East Street, where today you will  
    find a new building occupied by Reckitt & Coleman (Overseas) Ltd.  But the old building 
    was occupied nearly a century ago by someone whose name will perhaps  
    have an oddly familiar ring for you. 
         "The Rev. Hugh Croskery died at the age of 51, but almost everything about his  
    not very long life was unusual, including his death. Croskery was an Irishman, an  
    Ulsterman, born in 1835.  He started as a naval surgeon, of all things, and on the  
    strength of a Medical degree became a District Medical Officer in Jamaica. That was  
    as early as 1857, and he stayed many years at Chapelton, where he married the  
    daughter of the Rev. Charles Hall, who was at Chapelton for a quarter of a century.   
    In 1871 he became an Anglican deacon and served at Chapelton as curate to his  
    father-in-law.  He continued to practice as a doctor and is about the nearest I can  
    find to a medical missionary in Jamaica. He wrote a book, "The Gospel of the Kingdom",

1. ↑ Records of the Admiralty, Naveal Forces, Royal Marines, Coastguard and related bodies.

   Series: Admiralty, Officers service records (series III); Piece: Medical offices, catalogue ref. ADM 19619

2.   Bodleian Library collection.

   also on: archive.org/details/gospelkingdomav00crosgoog

3.   <http://www.turnbullclan.com/tca_genealogy/tca_all-p/main.htm>); Website of Brian Turnbull (brian@turnbullclan.com). c. "Croskery Family Genealogy Forum: Rev. Dr. Hugh Croskery" in GENEALOGY.COM PRESENTS GENFORUM (Website URL: <http://genforum.genealogy.com/croskery/messages.49.html>); message of Marion Croskery (mcroskery@hotmail.com), 4 April 2005. d. Donald Lindo, comp., DESCENDANTS OF HUGH CROSKERY (1803- ), (gen. report attached to e-mail message of Donald Lindo, Jamaica (deal@anbell.net) to Hugh Croskery, Jamaica (oledog@cwjamaica.com), 27 Apr 2007; fwd by Hugh Croskery to Brent Coskery, Canada, 27 Apr 2007; fwd by Brent Coskery to J.E. Stockman, 15 Jul 2007), "Electronic." .
4.   d. Donald Lindo, comp., DESCENDANTS OF HUGH CROSKERY (1803- ), (gen. report attached to e-mail message of Donald Lindo, Jamaica (deal@anbell.net) to Hugh Croskery, Jamaica (oledog@cwjamaica.com), 27 Apr 2007; fwd by Hugh Croskery to Brent Coskery, Canada, 27 Apr 2007; fwd by Brent Coskery to J.E. Stockman, 15 Jul 2007), "Electronic." .