INTRODUCTION

"American Unitarianism's great book" is the citation penned in 1923 to celebrate the work by Cooke published by the American Unitarian Association in 1902—Unitarianism in America: Its Origin and Development.

A brief biography of the author — George Willis Cooke by Charles A. Howe — is online in the Dictionary of Unitarian Universalist Biography (http://www.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/georgewilliscooke.html)

This book necessarily has the limitations and prejudices of its period. Also, it expresses the personal style of the author in its inclusion of long lists of people he esteemed important contributors to civilization. Nevertheless, Sydney Ahlstrom, the historian who documented Unitarianism in An American Reformation, concluded in 1985 that he had found Cooke's book the most adequate chronicle of events. Our presentation accepts the identification by the AUA and the author of people named as Unitarians, even though the listing may be imperfect now.

George Willis Cooke's celebration at the beginning of the 20th century of the 75th anniversary of the American Unitarian Association—which was founded in 1825—was followed by several later publications. In 1925 the 100th anniversary of the AUA was observed by publication by Beacon Press of Our Unitarian Heritage by Earl Morse Wilbur of the Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, California. This book, which was prepared at the request of the AUA Department of Education for the use of young people, contained 80 pages in four chapters on "Unitarianism in America."

In 1952, volume two of Wilbur's magnum opus—The History of Unitarianism—was published by Harvard University. Though concentrated on Europe, it did include a section on America, but Wilbur's story ends in 1900, and was not identified as celebrating the 125th anniversary of the American Unitarian Association.

The 150th anniversary of the AUA was celebrated in a well illustrated book—A Stream of Light: A Sesquicentennial History of American Unitarianism—published by the Unitarian Universalist Association and edited by Conrad Wright, the historically unexcelled historian of Unitarianism in America. The Professor of American Church History at Harvard invited four other scholars to unite with him in telling the story: Charles Forman, Daniel Walker Howe, David B Parke, and Carol R. Morris. This book is the most adequate and the most meticulously accurate tale of this liberal religious denomination.

Begun online in 2000 is a continuing celebration of Unitarianism sponsored by the First Parish in Cambridge, Massachusetts, entitled Notable American Unitarians. Sustaining support has come from the Unitarian Universalist Funding Program of the Unitarian Universalist Association and from various cosponsors of the project—Notable American Unitarians. The first three years of production feature 150 brief illustrated biographies of eminent women and men in the arts, the sciences, and the professions. The period of history covered is the quarter century of the New Renaissance stretching from the publication of Unitarians Face a New Age in 1936 to the founding of the Unitarian Universalist Association in 1961.

The second stage of the Notable American Unitarians project is now under way. It celebrates the publication of Unitarianism in America by George Willis Cooke by first sharing a historic document: a 20 page illustrated article written by Cooke in 1900 and published in New England Magazine. As the series develops, we shall next present brief illustrated biographies of some of the people Cooke celebrates in his illustrated document by summarizing his 463 page book. Also in the process of creation are a series of longer illustrated biographies. Here is a an announcement of what is in store as we proceed. Following are announcements of both the first stage and he second stage of this project.

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