John W. Bain (1833-1910)
James Dodson
Biographical Sketch
John Wallace Bain was born on April 1, 1833, near Hanover, Indiana, graduated from Westminster College in 1858, and completed his theological studies at Xenia, Ohio, before receiving licensure from the Southern Indiana Presbytery in April 1859 and ordination by the Chartiers Presbytery on November 12, 1861. His ministerial career spanned numerous congregations and states, beginning with a six-year pastorate at Canonsburg, Pennsylvania (1861–1867), followed by brief stints at Sidney, Ohio (1867–1868), and New Castle, Pennsylvania (1868–1873), then serving Third Church in Allegheny, Pennsylvania (1873–1874), Chicago, Illinois (1874–1877)—where he also served as Moderator of the Synod of Illinois in 1875—and Hamilton, Ohio (1877–1882). In 1882, Bain transferred his ministry to the Presbyterian Church, subsequently shepherding Alexander Church in Philadelphia (1883–1886) before settling in Altoona, Pennsylvania, from 1886 onward, while also serving on the Board of the Freedmen’s Mission (1864–1865). A prolific author and controversialist, he published extensively on theological and cultural issues, including God’s Songs and the Singer (1873), Objections to Secret Societies (1874), The Bible in the Schools, The Theatre, Our Position on Communion, The Golden Pot (1898), and an illustrated edition of Pilgrim’s Progress (1868) featuring his personal art collection. He died in 1910.
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