John Gordon Crowley is a VSU History Professor whose book, Origins and development of the Union Primitive Baptist Association of Georgia,is the definitive work on this areas’ Primitive Baptist history and traditions. This collection includes his exhaustive research materials. The Primitive Baptist Church, also known as Hard Shell, Old School and Anti-Mission, emerged as a distinct denomination during the Second Great Awakening (app 1790-1830). Due to the success of the movement’s revivals, many churches (including Baptist Churches) formed missionary societies to spread the gospel of “free will”. Primitive Baptists maintained their belief in predestination and rejected missionary societies along with Sunday schools, bible tract societies, seminary education, hierarchal church structure and temperance societies on the basis that there is no warrant or sanction from the New Testament. Primitive Baptists generally practice a cappella singing (Sacred Harp), family integrated worship, and foot washing. Primitive Baptists churches arose in the Appalachian areas of the southeastern United States and spread to what were the “frontier” areas of the South beyond the Appalachians.  They exercised a powerful influence on the founding and settlement of many Southeastern United States frontier communities in early nineteenth century.  An African-American Primitive Baptist movement developed separately and still maintains their unique denomination. Individual churches formed loose geographical associations to ensure adherence to doctrine and promote fellowship. Pamphlets of the proceedings of annual association meetings were published and distributed to members, churches and other associations. The pamphlets recorded the minutes of the meeting, membership numbers, monetary contributions, and doctrinal statements. The collection includes both original and photocopied pamphlets published from 1802-2011 by associations from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas,  Virginia and West Virginia. Information in the descriptions may also include meeting location, dates, names of church elders, recording clerks and obituaries. A large part of the collection is concentrated on associations and churches within the geographical region of South Georgia and North Florida. The collection is useful for historical and genealogical research. The collection is by no means comprehensive or all inclusive of Primitive Baptist congregations or associations in the United States.