William Kelynack

William Kelynack (22 May 1831 – 1 November 1891) was a Cornish Australian Methodist minister, President of Newington College, and President of the General Conference of the Australasian Wesleyan Methodist Church.

Early life Kelynack was born at Newlyn, Cornwall, and was educated in Penzance. He briefly taught in a private school before taking up mercantile pursuits.

After appointments to Chippendale, Parramatta and Wollongong he served in York Street, Sydney (1865–67) and Surry Hills (1868–70). During the 1860s, Kelynack was a councillor of Newington College, a committee member of Sydney City Mission, and became co-editor of the Christian Advocate and Wesleyan Record with William Curnow. In 1870 he was transferred to Goulburn where he was district chairman and in 1874 he returned to Bathurst.

England and America tour Kelynack returned to the United Kingdom in 1877 to visit his ailing mother.

Church leadership On his return to Sydney in 1878, Kelynack was appointed to the Bourke Street Church and two years later was elected president of the New South Wales and Queensland Annual Conference. In the 1880s he was a general secretary of Foreign Missions and travelled widely in the Pacific, raising £6000 in funds. Kelynack succeeded Joseph Horner Fletcher as president of Newington College in 1887. In May 1890 he was elected president of the Sixth General Conference of the Australasian Wesleyan Methodist Church.

He died from Bright's disease survived by his wife, Lucy, and by seven sons and four daughters.