St. James United Church Cemetery Stone #4 Reverend James Munro Dimensions: 82” x 42” x 4” Orientation: East Carver: Not identified Inscription: Original Monument of/ Rev. James Munro/ Sacred to the Memory of/ of/ The Rev. James Munro/ A Native of Mora ’Shire/ Scotland, and founder of the Presbyterian/ Church in this Place – Who died May 17^th, 1819/ Aged 72 years/ Newer boxstone (13”x14”x3”) at foot of headstone reads: The Reverend James Munro 1748-1819 Material: Grey sandstone. New piece black marble. Condition: The inscription is weathered to the point of illegibility in places and there are two large breaks in the stone itself. Moss and lichen cover much of the top, and weeds have grown up around the stone. A newer addition at the foot of the stone indicates that the stone memorializes the Reverend James Munro, and a heading was inscribed on the headstone at the time that states that the broken pieces of sandstone, which now lay on the ground, are the original monument. Reverend Munro was born in 1748 in Orbiston, Scotland. On June 18 1781, he was ordained a minister of the Church of Scotland but emigrated to the United States four years later. There, he was a Presbyterian minister in Delaware and Maryland for several years before moving to New Brunswick and finally Truro. Around 1794, he became a travelling missionary and toured the province. He was the first Presbyterian minister to visit Dorchester (Antigonish) in 1797, where he purchased land and visited frequently. In 1804, local Presbyterian families organized a place of worship and an acre of land was donated on the corner of Main and Church Streets where their church, schoolhouse and burial ground would be built. Reverend Munro was invited to be their pastor and took up residence there in 1808 where he remained for 10 years. In 1818 he became ill, and Revered Thomas Trotter was appointed to the position shortly thereafter. Reverend Munro died on May 17, 1818, and was interred in the church’s adjacent cemetery. (edited by Christopher Greencorn) [ Back ]