(22 Jan. 1861-11 July 1938), clergyman, missionary. (Rev. Dr. James P. McNaughton) Born at Notfield (Dominionville), south of Maxville, GC, presumably on his parents’ farm. Parents: Peter McNaughton and his wife Jane Kennedy. By one account, he was born after his father’s death. James P. McNaughton studied at Hamilton Collegiate Institute, Queen’s University (graduated 1884, then spent one year at Queen’s Theological Seminary), and for two years at Union Theological Seminary. His ordination to the ministry was at Rutherford Park, N. J., May 1887. For many years, perhaps for the whole of his missionary career, he was a missionary in Smyrna (Izmir), Turkey. He arrived at Smyrna in Oct. 1887, was in the U. S. on periods of leave 1899-1900, 1909-1910, 1915-1919, returned to the U. S. in Sept. 1930, and retired as a missionary in April 1931. Queen’s University gave him a D. D. in April 1916. As he became increasingly established in his missionary work, it appears that his “home” was the U. S. rather than Canada. During some period he was a resident minister at the Battle Creek Sanatorium in Michigan. In 1935, at the time of the death of his brother John P. McNaughton, he was living in Florida. At Smyrna on 23 June 1888 he was married to Rebecca Gladding Jillson. His place of death was Clifton Springs, N. Y. (four children) His wife survived him to die 29 Nov. 1947 at Claremont, Calif.

     When he was about to leave for Turkey as a missionary the churches of Maxville held a meeting (Dr Donald MacDiarmid being chairman) on 30 Aug. 1887 to show him their warm support. The Montreal Witness, reporting this meeting, stated that “Mr. McNaughton’s immediate destination is Smyrna, a station under the American Board of Foreign Missions, under whose auspices he goes out.” The reporter added that he would be “the second missionary from this locality stationed at Symrna,” Miss Emily MacCallum already having spent three years “in mission work there under the same Board.” Cosmopolitan and ethnically diverse as the 20th century began, the ancient Mediterranean port of Smyrna had, among Turks and other nationalities, a population of nearly 30,000 Jews and close to half that number of Armenians.

     In 1895, the American cruiser Minneapolis was ordered to Symrna to protect American-sponsored missionaries there, among them two people in the present dictionary, Emily MacCallum, of St. Elmo and Rev. James P. McNaughton. (Gleaner 28 Nov. 1895) In 1899, while on leave from Smyna, he visited Maxville. At this time, he was reported to be fluent in Turkish, and to have been stationed in Smyrna for 12 years, and to have done important relief work at the time of atrocities in Turkey against the Armenians. (Cornwall Freeholder 25 Aug. 1899, & 2O Years Ago column, 7 Aug. 1919) J. L. Campbell in the foreword to his (Campbell’s) The Patmos Letters (1908) called him “a warm personal friend of many years,” and thanked him for providing photographs for the book. A newspaper report of a lecture he gave in 1915, when home on furlough, to the Woman’s Canadian Club of Ottawa on the role of Turkey in WWI, describes him as “Prof. McNaughton of Maxville” and “Principal McNaughton,” and states he had been a missionary in Turkey for 25 years. (Cornwall Freeholder 7 Oct. 1915) In the spring of 1919 he revisited Maxville, prior to returning to his missionary work in Turkey. (Glengarry News 18 April 1919)

     See also the entry for F. W. MacCallum, missionary in Turkey.

Maxville (1991) 735, Campbell (1986), 98, 102 (portrait), family background as in entry for John P. McNaughton * biog. sketches of him and wife in Vinton Books of missionary lives (photocopied typescripts in Yale Divinity Library Special Collections) * writes letter (from Smyrna?), Cornwall Freeholder 8 June 1888, cited 2O Years Ago column, CF 5 June 1908 * MacMillan, Kirk, 196 * Witness as cited: ND (but approx. date can be established from external and internal evidence), photocopy in present author’s files * Ross & Fraser McNaughtons, II, 822, III, 1120