Early women evangelists served an important function in America’s history. As emissaries of religious thought in a country that routinely viewed business, politics, social practices, and religion in the same light, evangelists often found their function greatly expanded beyond the pulpit. They furthered westward exploration and settlement through their constant soul-seeking, while influencing politics, social legislation, Indian policies, and social welfare. They sponsored public education by founding colleges and universities, Indian missions, schools, and orphanages. West Went the Word is the story of a dozen women evangelists who braved the frontier to bring the message to the lost.
