He was born on 2 August 1844 at Wakefield. He was the only child of Rev Charles Kendall and Sarah Bickerstaffe. He was named after a friend of the family, Rev. Thomas Holliday, and his mother's family, Bickerstaffe. He served as a Primitive Methodist Minister from 1864 to 1903.
The Kendall family
Thomas and Fanny Kendall raised ten sons and one daughter to adulthood, six of the sons became Ministers in the Primitive Methodist Church; though not all remained as PMs. There are ten Kendalls listed in Leary, H. B. Kendall's father Charles, and five of his uncles, Dennis, Joseph ) joined the United Methodists. Amos immigrated to America and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church South, Henry joined the Congregationalist Methodists and H. B. Kendall's cousin Frederick Dennis. Cousins, Henry George and his brother James Dennis Hird were ordained in the Church of England. In recognition of the Kendall contribution to Primitive Methodism the Kendall Memorial Chapel was opened in 1885 in the hamlet of Ashby, Lincolnshire the home of the Kendall family since the 1820s. Kendall's family provided a remarkable number of clergy, not only among the Primitive Methodists but also in the Church of England.
Kendall served in the following Circuits - 1864 – Newcastle 1867 – North Shields 1871 – Sunderland 1874 – Durham 1877 – Spennymoor 1879 – Middlesbrough 1884 – Harrogate 1892 – Editor, 1901 – Folkestone, and President of the Conference 1902 – Bournemouth Kendall's own work describes the Primitive Methodist Bookroom in some detail. The minimal reference in Leary, "Editor", covers a decade of work which made Kendall one of the most influential persons of his time in Primitive Methodism.
Kendall the historian
Kendall's lasting claim to fame is the three separate histories of the Primitive Methodist Church. The second of these was commissioned for publication in 1907, the centenary of the first Primitive Methodist Camp Meeting, 31 May 1807. He is therefore regarded amongst British Methodists as one of the essential sources of information on this subject.
''History of the Primitive Methodist Connexion'', 1888
H B Kendall's first significant history was published in 1888. This shows a combination of literary style and scholarship which made Kendall a candidate for writing the most substantial of all the histories for the Camp Meeting Centenary. Kendall's skills would have been enhanced by his time as Connexional Editor, and retirement would have freed him to do the work. This the shortest work
''The Origin and History of the Primitive Methodist Church'', 1906
H B Kendall was honoured with being asked to write the major publication celebrating the Camp Meeting Centenary. This detailed work is generally regarded as the definitive history of Primitive Methodism. It was first published as a set of 14 fascicules of 80 pages each in paper covers, often breaking in mid-sentence between volumes. There are a few misprints, for example the dates of the first two Ramsor Camp Meetings being given as 1809 when they were actually 1808. The main printing was in 2 hardback volumes. This has since been reprinted by Tentmaker Publications.
''History of the Primitive Methodist Church'', 1919
A third history was written during World War I, and has his final words "penned when the Great War is over." This is a shorter work. The advantages of this volume are that it provides a more condensed summary of the history, and it contains information up to 1918. For example, the sub-headings in chapters II and III allow the reader easily to date the key events leading up to the adoption of the name Primitive Methodist on 13 February 1812. In this volume, we also find the considered judgement of a mature scholar upon the events of history and the people involved.
