Samuel Thomas Pettigrew (East India Company chaplain)

Samuel Thomas Pettigrew (1827-1889) was an East India Company chaplain, who served in Rangoon, Kamptee, Bangalore, Ootacamund and Trivandrum, and is credited with establishing the Bishop Cottons School in Bangalore.

Samuel Thomas Pettigrew was born in 1827 in London, as the son of an eminent physician. He completed his graduation as a Bachelow of the Arts, from the Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1848, and proceeded to get is Master of Arts in 1851. In 1848, he was ordained as a deacon by the Bishop of London, and as a priest in 1849. In 1853 he became a tutor and Fellow of St Augustine's College, Canterbury, and remained there till 1855. After serving a curacy for a short period at Westminster, he travelled to the East, where he served as chaplain of the Honourable East India Company, and was able to combine his priestly work and with his interest for natural history.

In 1855 he was appointed in the services of the East India Company, at Madras. In India he served at Rangoon (now Burma) (1855-57); Kamptee (1857-64); Bangalore (1864-67); Ootacamund (1869-72); Trevandrum (1874-77). Pettigrew was deeply interested in natural science, and was a keen botanist-entomologist, interested in the study of insects, birds, flowers, trees, architecture, church and school buildings, and Eurasian education.

In Bangalore, Pettigrew lived in a bungalow, called Sidney Park (present Kasturba Road) costing about £12 per month. Here, he made his plans on establishing schools and building churches in the Bangalore Civil and Military Station. His priority was schools, as those days most of the European and Eurasian children were being educated at Roman Catholic schools. The Government School at that time, was meant for the natives and did not encourage Eurasians to join, and other schools were far away in the Niligriris and at Madras. Hence, the Bishop Cotton's scheme of education for the hills was selected and a plan was made and forwarded to the Madras Government. Pettigrew was able to push for the inclusion of female students for the school, which had so far been resisted. His efforts were commentated with a mention in an Indian newspaper with the title The March of Female Education. The first 12 months of the school faced many difficulties and in this period, support came from General Hill and Captain Lavie, and the services of Rev Dr George Uglow Pope, renowned Canadian Tamil scholar, were obtained.

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