author
George Turner
1817–1891
A Scottish missionary in the South Pacific, he turned years of travel and close observation into vivid books about Samoa and Polynesia. His writing remains notable for the way it records local traditions, daily life, and belief systems alongside the story of mission work.
1 Audiobook
Samoa, A Hundred Years Ago And Long Before
by George Turner
About the author
Born in Scotland in 1818 and active in the 19th century, he served with the London Missionary Society in the Pacific, especially in Samoa and the New Hebrides. His long experience in the region gave him material for books that mixed travel narrative, missionary history, and careful descriptions of island societies.
His best-known works include Nineteen Years in Polynesia (1861) and Samoa, a Hundred Years Ago and Long Before (1884). These books helped introduce many English-language readers to Samoan history and culture, and they are still read today for their rich firsthand detail.
Because sources differ slightly on his birth year, he is often listed as born in either 1817 or 1818; he died in 1891. He is remembered not only as a missionary, but also as an early recorder of Pacific Island life and traditions.