The Life and Times of the Rev. Robert Burns . Including an Unfinished Autobiography

The Life And Times Of The Rev. Robert Burns. Including An Unfinished Autobiography by Robert Ferrier Burns presents a multi-faceted portrait of a late-19th-century churchman whose life bridged Scotland and Canada. The book compiles biographical sketches, reminiscences, sermons, and memorial responses that illuminate Burns’s leadership in education, church governance, and colonial missions. It highlights his advocacy for ecclesiastical reform—promoting a colonial university trust, public reporting, and non-sectarian patronage—alongside his enduring commitment to Knox College, Gaelic education, and library development. Across Scotland and Canada, the narrative traces Burns’s role as pastor-professor, his revivalist roots, and his expansive network among ministers, students, and lay leaders. It also documents transatlantic ties, fund-raising tours, and the cross-border work that shaped Presbyterian expansion in North America, including the foundation of churches, colleges, and bursaries. Memorial culture—assemblies, resolutions, and sermons—reveres Burns as a vigorous, generous, and intellectually formidable figure who wove public leadership with private devotion, education, and social reform.