Burned-Over District

name

Etymology

Coined by Charles Grandison Finney, who in his 1876 book Autobiography of Charles G. Finney referred to a "burnt district" to denote an area in central and western New York State during the Second Great Awakening. He felt that the area had been so heavily evangelized as to have no "fuel" (unconverted population) left over to "burn" (convert).

Definitions

  1. A nickname for portions of Western New York State, where there was much religious fervor…

    A nickname for portions of Western New York State, where there was much religious fervor during the Second Great Awakening.

  2. Alternative letter-case form of Burned-Over District.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

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sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA