With the publication of the twelfth and final volume of the Baptists in Early North America series, the editors present the historical works of one of the leading Baptists of the eighteenth century. Morgan Edwards was a pastor, scholar, and a builder of institutions (Rhode Island College, later Brown University). In the area of Baptist history, Edwards sought to gather historical materials toward a history of the Baptists in the American colonies to acquaint Baptists with one another and forge a national denomination. This volume contains a historical introduction followed by transcriptions of the historical materials that Edwards left to posterity. He intended to publish a twelve-volume work. There are historical materials for nine states, two of which were published in his lifetime (Pennsylvania [1771] and New Jersey [1792]). For some states, he also left his historical notebooks. Six remain and are presented as appendices in this volume. Where possible, the editors sought to get behind previously published editions of these works and to present the reader with transcriptions of the originals as they appear in manuscript form. Scholars and students of Baptist history will be particularly interested in the notes that were added by William H. Brackney, who completed all the notes in the main body of this volume shortly before his death. Brackney was the general editor of this series and a leading historian of the Baptists. His added notes link the previous volumes in this series together, which makes it a fitting end to this project on the Baptists in Early North America.
