John Cook

Very Rev John Cook (1807–1874) was a 19th-century Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland for the year 1866/67. He was born in Laurencekirk on 12 September 1807 the son of Rev George Cook (1772-1845) the local minister, and his wife, Diana Shank. He was one of several children including Rev George Cook minister of Borgue. John followed in the family tradition and studied Divinity at St Andrews University. In 1827 his father served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland following in the footsteps of his own father, Very Rev John Cook who served in 1816. In 1833 he became minister of St Mary's in Haddington and remained in service there for 41 years. In 1866 he succeeded Very Rev James Macfarlane as Moderator of the General Assembly. In 1867 he was succeeded in turn by Very Rev Thomas Jackson Crawford. His position created the only grandfather-father-son sequence of Moderator's in the Church of Scotland. He died in Haddington on 11 September 1874, the day before his 67th birthday. He was married to Helen Davidson. Among their daughters were Diana Shank Cook and Martha Mary Cook. Among his great uncles were Rev. George Hill and Professor John Hill.