Preface

More than 70 years have passed since Ellen White died. The world of the late twentieth century is very different from her nineteenth- and early twentieth-century milieu. Even so, America probably changed in more fundamental ways between the time she was born (in 1827) and the time of her death (in 1915) than it has since. Because of the differences between our own time and hers and those during her own age, we often have little knowledge or understanding of the society within which she lived and wrote.WEGW 9.1

This volume of short, descriptive essays attempts to provide the essential historical background for understanding Ellen White’s writings. Although a general history of the United States during Mrs. White’s lifetime would have provided some of this information, we have chosen to explore selected elements of the past that were either of significance to this shaper of Adventism or place her concerns within the context of the larger society. Thus the writers respectively address such subjects as eating and drinking habits, travel conditions, and entertainment, among other things. One chapter looks at Australia during the period that Ellen White lived there.WEGW 9.2

It is hoped that the themes of her work will take on increased meaning as this social background is sketched in. For those who are interested, the authors have suggested readings in both Ellen White’s writings and standard historical accounts.WEGW 9.3

Finally, a word about what this book is not. First, Ellen White is not the subject of this volume; hence, she appears only occasionally in these pages. Second, these essays do not address the critical interpretive questions regarding Ellen White’s relationship to her milieu. Instead, they have the more limited task of simply establishing the nature of the milieu itself.WEGW 9.4

Third, with some notable exceptions—the chapters on Portland; Michigan during the Civil War; the Sunday law movement; and, to a lesser extent, the overland railroad—the authors do not provide information new to the scholarly world. Rather, they attempt to synthesize present historical scholarship for a more general audience.WEGW 10.1

It is the belief of the writers of these essays that historical knowledge is essential to understanding the present. Thus, awareness of our denomination’s history is necessary to anyone seeking to understand its current situation. The church and Ellen White did not develop in a vacuum. In the next several pages you will discover what the world of early Seventh-day Adventism, particularly that of its prophet Ellen G. White, was like.WEGW 10.2