Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in New England

The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in New England (also known as the New England Company or Company for Propagation of the Gospel in New England and the parts adjacent in America) was a British charitable organization created to promote Christian missionary activity among the Native American peoples of New England and other parts of North America under British control. It operated within the territory of what is now the United States from 1649 to 1786. Due to the independence of the United States from Great Britain, after 1786 the Society continued to operate only in Canada and the British West Indies.

The Eliot Indian Bible, published in 1663 as the first Bible printed in North America, was published with the support of the Society

In 1649 Parliament of England enacted An Act for the Promoting and Propagating the Gospel of Jesus Christ in New England,[1] which set up a Corporation in England consisting of a President, a Treasurer, and fourteen people to help them.[2] The official name of the Corporation was "The President and Society for the propagation of the Gospel in New England".[2] The Corporation had the power to collect money in England for missionary purposes in New England.[2] This money was received by the Commissioners of the United Colonies of New England and dispersed for missionary purposes.

The Society supported the early efforts of John Eliot in Massachusetts, culminating in the first Bible translation of a Native American language, known as the Eliot Indian Bible, published in 1663. The Society also played a critical role in funding and founding many notable institutions in the United States, which provided outreach to Native Americans, including Harvard Indian College and Dartmouth College.[3][4]

The first president of the Society was the eminent Anglo-Irish scientist Robert Boyle (1627–1691). Boyle, who had no direct descendants, stated in his will that his legacy should be dedicated to "the Advance or Propagation of the Christian Religion amongst Infidells". After an prolonged dispute among his executors it was decided that the legacy would be used to purchase Brafferton Estate in Yorkshire, and that the proceeds of that estate would be used to pay "a rent-charge in perpetuity of £90 per annum unto the Company for Propagating the Gospel in New England".[5]