Sermons for a Revolution: Acquiring the Joseph Bowman Archive

The Clements Library collection comprises thousands of rare and unique materials that illuminate the lived experiences of those who came before us. Now you can help us add to these holdings by acquiring a previously unknown manuscript collection from the Colonial period!

It is an extraordinary archive of 192 original sermons written between 1765 and 1780 by Rev. Joseph Bowman. He was a Harvard-trained Congregationalist minister who served in Oxford, Massachusetts, and as a military chaplain in the Patriot cause. Totaling approximately 2,000 pages of handwritten text, these sermons form a significant corpus of religious writing that coincides with the final years of the First Great Awakening and continues through the American Revolution. Bowman’s writings address many of the defining theological concerns of his time—including conversion, sin and repentance, baptism, salvation, and church authority—while also reflecting on family, poverty, wealth, temperance, and the obligations of individuals to their communities. Among the many compelling items in the archive are sermons that Bowman delivered to the army in July 1775 and February 1776, during the early stages of the War for Independence. These extraordinary survivals of preaching to Continental troops, along with a 1777 address for men departing “into ye service of ye Country,” offer vivid insight into the moral, spiritual, and political world of Revolutionary-era New England.

Collections of this size and significance from the Colonial period rarely come to market, and acquiring Rev. Bowman's sermons would greatly strengthen the Clements Library’s already exceptional holdings related to the American Revolution. With your support, the Clements Library can preserve this newly discovered voice from Revolutionary America and make it available for study by students, scholars, and the public for generations to come.

Your gift also has the potential to be matched 2 ways!

1. Members of the Clements Library Associates Board of Governors have committed $20,000 to match 1:1.
2. If you set up a monthly gift, then you can lock-in an additional match up to $100 per month for a year! If you set up a monthly gift of $74 with this match, you’ll be making a gift of $1,776 – a perfect number to celebrate the 250th!

If you have any questions, please reach out to clemdevcom@umich.edu or 734-7642347.