Book Minute

George Washington. Benjamin Franklin. Thomas Jefferson. The names of America’s founders resound through history. John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Elias Boudinot. Wait. I’ve never heard of Elias Boudinot. You’re not alone. He was the commissary general for prisoners during the American Revolution, a US congressman, a president of the Continental Congress, and director of the US Mint. Boudinot was born in Philadelphia in 1740. He took part in many momentous events during the American Revolution and the founding of the republic. After retirement from public life, Boudinot added another important line to his résumé. He dedicated his time to the spread of the Bible in the young nation. By 1814, a number of local and regional Bible societies had formed. But an estimated 76,000 families still lacked Bibles. Seeing the need, Boudinot helped organize the American Bible Society and served as its first president. He donated over 4,000 acres of land and $10,000 in bank shares. In the ensuing decades, the American Bible Society printed Bibles in French, Spanish, German, and English. Countless immigrants received a Bible from ABS. In 2016, on its 200th anniversary, the American Bible Society estimated it had delivered six billion Bibles around the globe. And it began with one of our founders, Elias Boudinot.