Following in the footsteps of his father, Dandeson Coates Crowther translated the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, “Dusk to Dusk,” into Igbo. He also translated a portion of the Bible book of Jeremiah into Yoruba.
Archdeacon Dandeson Coates Crowther (September 24, 1844 – January 5, 1938) was a distinguished clergyman and a pivotal figure in the Anglican Church across West Africa. The son of Archbishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther, he played a crucial role in the Christianisation of the Niger Delta and the establishment of an independent African-led church.
Born in Sierra Leone, Crowther was drawn to the ministry from an early age. He joined the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in 1870 and, by 1876, had been appointed Archdeacon of the Niger Delta. He is widely credited with spearheading the “mass movement” towards Christianity in the region during the 1870s. His leadership ultimately led to the first significant African-led secession from the Anglican Church when he founded the Niger Delta Pastorate.
Dandeson Coates Crowther was ordained at St Mary’s Parish Church by his father, Samuel Ajayi Crowther. Before assuming his archdeaconry, he served in various capacities, including as his father’s secretary and chaplain, as well as Senior Pastor in Bonny, in the Niger Delta.
Educated across three countries, Crowther studied in Sierra Leone, Nigeria, and England. He attended the CMS Grammar School in Lagos before moving to London, where he studied at the Church Missionary Society College in Islington, graduating in 1863. His contributions to the church were later recognised with the award of a Doctorate of Divinity at Lambeth in 1921.
Crowther’s missionary work formally began in 1870 when he was ordained by his father. On June 19 of that year, he became a deacon at St Mary’s Parish Church in Islington, before returning to the Niger Delta in 1871 to join the CMS Niger Mission. He was made a priest in Lagos on March 12, 1871, and remained in Bonny until his appointment as Archdeacon of the Niger Delta in 1876.
As Archdeacon-often referred to as “Venerable”-he oversaw the CMS’s Lower Niger and Delta stations, leading the Southern Nigeria Province of the mission.
A man of great resolve, Crowther travelled extensively between West Africa and Britain, often aboard Elder Dempster Line ships. Though he moved frequently between London and Nigeria, he sought refuge in Freetown, Sierra Leone, whenever his health deteriorated.
Crowther faced significant opposition throughout his ministry. Many within the CMS hierarchy resisted the idea of African-born clergy assuming leadership roles, and this hostility intensified after the Niger Crisis of 1890. The institutional racism of the time not only undermined his work but also contributed to the immense strain that led to his father’s death in 1891.
Letters written by Crowther reveal his awareness of attempts to remove him from the CMS, yet he remained steadfast in his mission. He served as Archdeacon of the Niger Delta until 1926.
In recognition of his lifelong dedication to the church, he was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1935 and was knighted by the King, becoming “Sir” Dandeson Coates Crowther. He passed away on January 5, 1938, in Freetown, Sierra Leone He was 93.
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