Salvation Army.

Religious liberals held no monopoly on concern for the poor in the swelling industrial cities. Missions and voluntary societies that focused on individual conversion were extremely active in late-nineteenth-century urban centers. Among the most distinctive and comprehensive of these groups was the Salvation Army, which was introduced by its English founders to the United States in 1880. Its military style of organization and aggressive approach were unfamiliar at first in the United States, but by 1890 the Salvation Army was an accepted and increasingly visible presence in urban life. The Army was founded in London in 1865 by the Methodist preachers William and Catherine Booth. The Booths wanted to carry evangelism into the streets, and they developed a colorful and entertaining style of ministry that included bombarding poor neighborhoods with brass bands, preachers, and "Hallelujah Lasses" (female evangelists). The group adopted its...