This book is a result of a ten-year-long program sponsored by Lilly Endowment, Inc. through Auburn Theological Seminary in New York to study the history of various phases of theological education in the United States. It presents the major themes involved in the development of Protestant theological education in the U.S. between 1740 and 1875. It was during these years that most of the institutional structure of contemporary theological education was built. This study of the schooling of the preachers focuses on six major changes or crises in these institutions. This text presents a selection of examples which describe the general pattern of development in the institutions, formal and informal, devoted to the training of future ministers.