William Carey
1761 – 1834

William Carey, known as the “Father of Modern Missions,” was born at Northamptonshire, England, and became a cobbler at the age of fourteen. He studied privately on his own and mastered Dutch, French, Greek, and Hebrew before he was twenty years of age.

Two years later at the age of twenty-two, he joined the Baptist church and began preaching immediately, mostly on the theme of missions. He helped organize the English Baptist Missionary Society and was one of its first missionaries to India.

His services there were remarkable for their range and depth. In addition to soul winning, Carey founded the Serampore College, and with the aid of other linguists, he translated the Bible into forty-four languages and dialects.

Through his efforts the Bible was made available to three hundred million people before the American civil war. He was also instrumental in developing grammars and dictionaries in Bengali, Sanskrit, and other native tongues.