Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)/Northern Baptists

NORTHERN BAPTISTS, the name applied to members of the Baptist Church who hold their membership in the Northern branch. From 1813 to 1845 the missionary activities of the Baptist churches were carried on by “The General Convention of the Baptist Denomination in America,” but in the latter year differences arose between the Northern and Southern Baptists about slavery which resulted in a division of the Baptist Church into the two branches. The Southern churches formed the “Southern Baptist Convention” which has continued to be their Missionary Society, while the Northern Baptists organized the “American Baptist Missionary Union.” In 1907 the Northern Baptists merged their Home and Foreign Missionary organization into the “Northern Baptist Convention.” In 1914 the communicants of the Northern branch of the Baptist Church numbered 1,238,323, the number of churches, 9,570, and 8,275 ministers. See Baptists.