Billy Sunday
Evangelist, Baseball Player
1862 – 1935
Who was Billy Sunday?
William Ashley "Billy" Sunday was an American athlete who, after being a popular outfielder in baseball's National League during the 1880s, became the most celebrated and influential American evangelist during the first two decades of the 20th century.
Born into poverty in Iowa, Sunday spent some years at the Iowa Soldiers' Orphans' Home before working at odd jobs and playing for local running and baseball teams. His speed and agility provided him the opportunity to play baseball in the major leagues for eight years, where he was an average hitter and a good fielder known for his base-running.
Converted to evangelical Christianity in the 1880s, Sunday left baseball for the Christian ministry. He gradually developed his skills as a pulpit evangelist in the Midwest and then, during the early 20th century, he became the nation's most famous evangelist with his colloquial sermons and frenetic delivery. Sunday held widely reported campaigns in America's largest cities, and he attracted the largest crowds of any evangelist before the advent of electronic sound systems. He also made a great deal of money and was welcomed into the homes of the wealthy and influential. Sunday was a strong supporter of Prohibition, and his preaching likely played a significant role in the adoption of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1919.
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- Born
- Nov 19, 1862
Ames - Also known as
- William Ashley Sunday
- Spouses
- Helen Thompson Sunday
(1888/09/05 - )
- Helen Thompson Sunday
- Children
- Religion
- Evangelicalism
- Nationality
- United States of America
- Profession
- Education
- Northwestern University
- Lived in
- Iowa
- Died
- Nov 6, 1935
Chicago - Resting place
- German Waldheim Cemetery
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
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"Billy Sunday." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 20 Apr. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/billy_sunday>.
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