When Jared Sparks was ordained in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1819, William Ellery Channing delivered a formative historic sermon on "Unitarian Christianity." Sparks was a historian and Unitarian minister who was president of Harvard (1849-1853). He was a pioneer in publishing documents of American History. His works included The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution (12 volumes), Works of Benjamin Franklin (10 volumes); Works of George Washington, Papers of James Madison, and the Library of American Biography.