Question

document b: the christian history, june 30, 1744
the christian history was a periodical published in boston, massachusetts, between 1743 and 1745. each issue contained accounts of religious revivals in great britain and in the colonies. this account describes events in jonathan edwardss efforts in northampton, massachusetts.
in the night after the lords day, october 29, 1727, there was a general and amazing earthquake throughout new england & the neighbouring provinces, which, with several repeated shocks afterwards, in diverse parts of the land, was a means of awakening many to serious thoughts of god and eternity, and of reviving religion among us.
but a more remarkable revival of religion in this country follows in a time of great security, when there was no terrible dispensation of providence to awaken the minds of men, in the years 1734, 45, and 36. an account of this is given in a printed treatise entitled a faithful narrative of the surprising work of god in the conversion of many hundred souls in northampton... in the province of the massachusetts,... written by the rev. mr. jonathan edwards, minister of northampton. just after my grandfathers solomon stoddard death, it seemed to be a time of extraordinary dulness in religion. licentiousness for some years greatly prevailed among the youth of the town. there were many of them, very much addicted to night - walking, and frequently the tavern, and lewd practices, wherein some, by their example, exceedingly corrupted others. it was their manner very frequently to get together, in conversions of both sexes, for mirth and jollity, which they called frolicks. they would often spend the greater part of the night in them, without regard to any order in the families they belonged to, and indeed, family government did too much fail in the town. it was becoming very customary with many of our young people to be indecent in their carriage at meetings, which doubtless would not have prevailed to such a degree, had it not been that my grandfather, through his great age (tho he retained his powers surprisingly to the last), was not able to observe them. there had also long prevailed in the town, a spirit of contention between two parties, into which they had for many years been divided, by which a jealousy was maintained one of the other, and they were prepared to oppose one another in all public affairs.
but in two or three years after mr stoddards death, there began to be a sensible amendment of these evils; the young people, by degrees left off their frolicking, and grew observably more decent in their attendance on the public worship, and there were more that manifested a religious concern than there used to be. at the latter end of the year 1733, there appeared a very unusual flexibility, and yielding to advice to our young people. it had been too long since their manner to make the evening after the sabbath, and after our public lecture, to be especially the time of their mirth and company - keeping. but a sermon was now preached on the sabbath before the lecture, to show the evil tendency of the practice, and to persuade them to reform it, and it was urged on heads of families, that it should be a thing agreed upon among them to govern their families, and keep their children at home, at these times. but parents found little or no occasion for the exercise of government, in this case, the young people declared themselves convinced by what they heard from the pulpit, and were willing of themselves to comply with the counsel that had been given; and it was immediately, and, i suppose, almost universally adhered to, and there was a thorough reformation of these disorders thenceforward, which has continued ever since.
close reading a document
when historians study a document, they evaluate sources by analyzing the language and perspectives of the time. this analysis skill is known as close reading. as you read document b, take notes based on the prompts below.

1. describe what you learned about jonathan edwardss town and its history.

Explanation:

The text describes Northampton, Massachusetts in the 18th - century. After an earthquake in 1727, there was a religious awakening. Before that, in the years following Solomon Stoddard's death, the town had issues like youth licentiousness and disorderly behavior. But in the years after his death, there was a noticeable moral improvement, with people becoming more religious and orderly. Jonathan Edwards was a minister in Northampton and wrote about the conversion of many souls.

Answer:

Northampton in the 18th - century had a period of moral decline after Solomon Stoddard's death, with youth engaging in licentious behavior. An earthquake in 1727 led to a religious awakening. Over time, there was a moral reformation with people becoming more religious and orderly. Jonathan Edwards was a minister there and documented religious conversions.