A Biographical Dictionary of Modern Rationalists/Abbot, Francis Ellingwood

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Abbot, Francis Ellingwood, American writer. B. Nov. 6, 1836. Ed. Harvard University and Meadville Theological School. He entered the Unitarian ministry in 1863, but abandoned it five years later and founded The Index, a journal of "free religious inquiry" or "scientific theism." It was transferred to Boston in 1874, and Abbot edited it until 1880. By his Impeachment of Christianity (1872) and other works, his journal, and his numerous lectures, he rendered great service to the cause of Rationalism (on Theistic lines) in the United States. He was first President of the American National Liberal League. D. 1903.