James PillarsPrint Page 
The monument over the grave, which was erected by the congregation and friends, commemorates James Pillars (1834 -1875), Minister and husband of the spiritualist Annie Bright. He drowned in 1875 and his body was never recovered. It was erected over the grave of his child in the Haslem`s Creek cemetery which was the former name of Rookwood.
Reverend James Pillars, a Unitarian minister, encouraged Annie to leave home and accompany him to Australia. They were married on 6 July 1864 in the High Pavement Unitarian Chapel, Nottingham, and migrated shortly afterwards to Sydney, where he took up his position as minister of a freethought church. Pillars was acknowledged as an excellent preacher, but his advanced ideas split the congregation, delaying the completion of a new church building. A decline in subscriptions caused financial hardship and, in an effort to alleviate this as well as to further her own abilities, Annie began a small school with the help of her husband, teaching the daughters of their friends. On 31 July 1875 she was left to do this alone when Pillars, while on a Sunday School excursion, fell from a cliff, was swept off the rocks at Bondi and presumably drowned.
Location
| Address: | Hawthorne Avenue, Independent Section, Rookwood Necropolis, Rookwood, 2141 |
|---|---|
| State: | NSW |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: 33.874722 Long: 151.058333 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Religion |
| Link: | http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/adbonli… |
Dedication
JAMES PILLARS B.A.
XI Years Minister Of The
Unitarian Church
Sydney
He Fell From The Rocks
Near Bondi
XXX1 July M.D.CCC.LXV
Aged XLI Years.
Born At Bristol England
XI June M.D.CCC.XXXIV
His Grave Was The Ocean
This Memorial
Is Erected By His
Attached Congregation
And Other Friends Of
Free Religious Inquiry.
In Recognition Of
His Manly Virtues, And
In Affectionate
Remembrance
Of His
Earnest Conscientious,
And Self Denying Labours
In The Cause Of
True Religion
"He Being Dead Yet Speaketh"
