The Second Great Awakening was a religious revival during the late 18th to early 19th century in the United States. It spread religion through revivals and emotional preaching and sparked a number of schismatic movements. Revivals were key to the movement and attracted hundreds of converts to new denominations. The Methodist Church used circuit riders to reach people in frontier locations.
The Second Great Awakening led to a period of antebellum social reform and an emphasis on salvation by institutions. The outpouring of religious fervor and revival began in Kentucky and Tennessee in the 1790s and early 1800s among the Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists. New religious movements emerged during the Second Great Awakening, such as Adventism, Dispensationalism, and the Latter Day Saint movement. The Second Great Awakening also led to the founding of several well-known colleges, seminaries, and mission societies.