Campbell Alexander

Campbell, Alexander, was born in 1788 near Ballymena, county Antrim. At an early age he emigrated to the United States, where he worked as an itinerant preacher. In 1826 he issued an edition of the New Testament, substituting for "baptist" and "baptism" the words "immerser" and "immersion." He was an active propagandist of his own particular views on certain religious doctrines, and in consequence gathered quite a following. In 1827 his party became known as "The Disciples of Christ," and have since grown to have upwards of 5,000 places of meeting and more than half a million members. In 1841 he established Bethany College, West Virginia, where in 1866 he died.