Judah Ely letter to the students of the Collegiate Institution, 1824 March 1

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Creator	Ely, Judah
Title	Judah Ely letter to the students of the Collegiate Institution, 1824 March 1
Dates	1824-03-01
Abstract	Judah Ely letter to the students and alumni of the Amherst Collegiate Institution in which Ely writes regarding the death of Zephaniah Swift Moore and suggests an annual essay contest with a monetary reward, in Moore's honor. Ely writes that he had sent Moore a letter and three dollars for the purchase of a prize to go to an essay winner and that he had suggested to essay subject should be "the evil arising from an intemperate use of distilled liquors in the U. States and the best means of preventing them." He explains his plans for the essay contest he had proposed further, and proposes a new plan for a prize essay contest to honor Moore, called the "Moore Prize Essay" for which a "Moore fund" could be raised. He suggests two possible subjects, one relating to the importance of Christianity to national prosperity and happiness and the other regarding the evils of slavery and best means of removing them. Ely then writes regarding his own opinions on each subject, discussing current topics such as a decreasing reference to God in government and the aims of the American Colonization Society. He also states that he is enclosing ten dollars to go towards the Moore fund. The letter is addressed to the alumni of Amherst Collegiate Institution though the salutation of the letter states it is to the students of the Institution.
Notes	Amherst College was conceived out of the previously existing Amherst Academy and was founded in 1821 as the Collegiate Institution. From 1821-1825 the College was known primarily as the Collegiate Institution or the Amherst Institution. In 1825 the institution was granted charter by the Massachusetts State Legislature and was thereafter known as Amherst College.
Physical Description	1 item (4 pages)
Languages	English
Place of Production	Westfield (N.Y.)
Genre	Correspondence
Subject	Ely, Judah – Correspondence
Subject	Church and state – United States
Subject	American Colonization Society
Subject	Slavery – United States
Subject	Amherst College – History
Part of	Amherst College Early History Manuscripts and Pamphlets Collection
Finding Aid	View the finding aid for this item's collection
Repository	Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
Shelf Location	Box 1 Folder 17
Access and Use	Public Domain: We believe this material to be in the public domain and free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. While Amherst College Archives & Special Collections claims no rights or authority over this material, we do ask that any publication or use of this material cite the Archives & Special Collections at Amherst College as the source of the images and the repository where the original documents can be found.