Author Description

During the Great Awakening in New England, Eleazar Wheelock, the New Light minister, missionary to the Indians, and educator was a prolific religious communicator and letter writer. His correspondence served as an agent in the creation, preservation, definition, and redefiniition of a revival community. Such 'scribal publication' was effective in spreading news of revivals and uniting New Light ministers in the remote corners of the New England countryside. Letters, rather than oral communication or the print public sphere, frequently served as the catalyst for New England evangelicals to transcend their geographical isolation.