James Finn

For the First World War VC recipient, see James Fynn.

James Finn
File:James Finn.jpg
Born	1806
Died	1872 (aged 65–66)
Resting place	Wimbledon, London
Nationality	British
Occupation	U.K. Consul in Jerusalem, writer, philanthropist
Years active	1846 – 1863
Known for	Writings about Palestine
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Anne Finn
Children	Alexander 'Guy Fawkes' Finn, 1847 Constance Finn, 1851 Arthur Henry Finn, 1854

James Finn was a British Consul in Jerusalem, in the then Ottoman Empire (1846–1863). He arrived in 1845 with his wife Elizabeth Anne Finn. Finn was a devout Christian, who belonged to the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the Jews, but who did not engage in missionary work during his years in Jerusalem.

Finn was a writer and philanthropist. He was a great believer in productivity, an ideology that was very much in vogue at the time, and in 1853 purchased for £250 Karm al-Khalil (Arabic for "Abraham's Vineyard", lit. "vineyard of the loved one", which in Hebrew became Kerem Avraham) a barren piece of land outside the walls of the Old City. Kerem Avraham was established as a training farm for Jews in agriculture and to become productive citizens. Finn employed Jewish labourers to build the first house there in 1855. Cisterns for water storage were built and a soap factory was established which produced high quality soap sold to tourists.

He helped establish the experimental farm at the village of Artas outside Bethlehem.

Books (partial list)

• James Finn, 1868: Byeways in Palestine, London 482pp.
• James Finn: Byeways in Palestine, Adamant Media, Boston, 2002 reprint of the London 1868 original. 482pp. ISBN 1-4021-9272-X
• James Finn: The Orphan Colony of Jews in China. Containing a letter received from themselves, with the latest information concerning them. London 1872.
• Finn, James, (1878): Stirring Times: Or Records from Jerusalem Consular Chronicles of 1853 to 1856., Edited by Elizabeth Anne Finn. vol. 1. London. The full text, archive.org, Original: Harvard. Can download PDF.
  • alternative: Stirring Times: Or Records from Jerusalem Consular Chronicles of 1853 to 1856., Edited by Elizabeth Anne Finn. vol. 1. London. The full text, archive.org, Original: University of Michigan. Can download PDF.
• Finn, James, (1878): Stirring Times: Or Records from Jerusalem Consular Chronicles of 1853 to 1856., Edited by Elizabeth Anne Finn. vol. 2. London. The full text, archive.org, Original: Harvard. Can download PDF.
  • alternative: Stirring Times: Or Records from Jerusalem Consular Chronicles of 1853 to 1856., Edited by Elizabeth Anne Finn. vol. 2. London. The full text, archive.org, Original: University of Michigan. Can download PDF.
• Finn, James (1843). The Jews in China London: Wertheim. -University of Hong Kong Libraries, Digital Initiatives, China Through Western Eyes
• Finn, James (1872). The orphan colony of Jews in China London: Nisbet. -University of Hong Kong Libraries, Digital Initiatives, China Through Western Eyes
• Elizabeth Anne McCaul Finn: A Home in the Holy Land. A tale illustrating customs and incidents in modern Jerusalem. Adamant Media, Boston, 2002 reprint of the London 1866 original. ISBN 978-1-4021-1768-8
• Elizabeth Anne McCaul Finn: A Third Year in Jerusalem. A tale illustrating customs and incidents of modern Jerusalem; or, a sequel to "Home in the Holy Land". Adamant Media, Boston, 2002 reprint of the London 1869 original. ISBN 978-1-4021-1053-5

See also

• Saint George Interfaith shrine
• Motza, History
• Kerem Avraham
• Bayt 'Itab

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Works by James Finn at Project Gutenberg
  • Byeways in Palestine, at the Project Gutenberg