Elias Hicks Disownment Testimony, 1829 — Period Manuscript Copy — Quaker Hicksite–Orthodox Separation

A substantial early nineteenth-century manuscript copy of the testimony issued against Elias Hicks by the Orthodox Monthly Meeting of Friends of Westbury and Jericho, Long Island, dated April 29, 1829.

Written across three pages, the document offers a detailed and forceful statement of the Orthodox objections to Hicks’s religious teachings and activities during one of the defining controversies in American Quaker history.

Opening with an acknowledgment of Hicks’s long service as a minister, the testimony proceeds to accuse him of departing from established Christian beliefs concerning scriptural authority, the nature and divinity of Christ, redemption, and resurrection. It also recounts the Philadelphia separation of 1827, subsequent separate meetings, and Hicks’s travels in Ohio, Indiana, and elsewhere.

The testimony culminates in the declaration: “we do hereby disown him the said Elias Hicks,” followed by an expression of hope for his repentance and spiritual restoration.

The conclusion names Valentine Willets as clerk. The outside is docketed “Copy of a testimony against Elias Hicks.” Offered as a period manuscript copy of the dated testimony; the clerk’s subscription is not independently authenticated as an original signature.

An evocative historical record of religious dissent, contested authority, and the Hicksite–Orthodox division within the Society of Friends.

Condition: Age toning, scattered foxing and staining, edge wear, small losses at folds, and extensive horizontal fold splitting or separation. The text remains substantially legible. Later pencil notation on the outside. Handle with care.