Elizabeth C. Clephane
Elizabeth Cecelia Douglas Clephane (18 June 1830 – 19 February 1869) was a Scottish songwriter, who wrote the hymns "The Ninety and Nine" and "Beneath the Cross of Jesus".
Life
She was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the daughter of Andrew Clephane FRSE (1780-1838), advocate and Sheriff of Fife, and Anna Maria Douglas, daughter of Lt Col Robert Douglas and Anna Maria Ashenhurst). She died at Bridgend House, near Melrose, Roxburghshire, Scotland.
Folklore claims that Elizabeth wrote "The Ninety and Nine" for her brother, George Clephane (1819-1851), who had "returned to the flock" only a short time before his death. As the story goes, he fell from his horse and struck his head upon a rock and was killed instantly. His grave site at Fergus, Ontario, Canada has become a pilgrimage of sorts for those who admired Clephane's hymns. Other siblings were Anna Maria Clephane (c. 1823-1895) and Anna Jane Douglas Clephane (c. 1825-1910).
Elizabeth is buried in the grave of her parents in St Cuthbert's churchyard in central Edinburgh. The grave lies against the southern wall of the central section.
Sources
- Bailey, Albert Edward (1950). The Gospel in Hymns. New York: Charles Scribners’s Sons. pp. 456–457.
- Julian, John (1907). Dictionary of Hymnology (2nd ed.). London: J. Murray. pp. 238, 1162.
- Stulken, Marilyn Kay (1981). Hymnal Companion to the Lutheran Book of Worship. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Fortress Press. p. 206.
External links
- Works by or about Elizabeth C. Clephane at Internet Archive
- Works by Elizabeth C. Clephane at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
- Elizabeth Clephane - Page contains a photo of Elizabeth Clephane and a MIDI file with the music to the hymn
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