On his retirement from the active labors of the leadership of the Illinois Baptist State Convention, Dr. E. P. Brand was requested by the Convention to prepare a history of Illinois Baptists. It was a labor of love, and he tirelessly gave himself to the task of gathering historical data and writing his book. He was called away before the work could be finished.

     The Committee appointed by the Convention to edit and publish the history has felt strongly that the work should be given to the denomination as it came from its author. It bears upon it the marks of Dr. Brand. Intermingling with its story of the years of struggle in Illinois are the preachments of this stalwart laborer, who, for nearly a quarter of a century, spent his life for Jesus Christ in Illinois.

     The book is not published as an official history. It is better than that. It is the outpouring of the rich mind of one whose life-roots were deeply embedded in the life and progress of the Baptists in this State.

     Acting under the instructions of the Convention the Committee publishes this work as a loving tribute to the great leader who so tirelessly built the kingdom among us.

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[Edward P. Brand, Illinois Baptists -- A History, 1930. Scanned and formatted by Jim Duvall.]

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Chapter 1
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