Throughout the 19th Century, people excitedly believed in the imminent physical return to Earth of Jesus Christ. Each Advent group proposed its date for that Promised Event, and each was intensely disappointed when its selected date passed by without the anticipated event taking place.
I have collected pages from books written at the time of the 19th century date-setting predictor, William Miller. This collection is available at:
http://www.jwstudies.com/William_Miller__selections_from_contemporary_books.pdf
These pages come from books by Miller and his supporters and from books of those who vehemently opposed him.
Miller stands in a long line of people who made the same mistake of setting dates. I hope these pages illustrate the folly of pursuing the rationale Miller employed, such as using contemporary events to interpret the Bible, as well as the folly of setting dates for activities of the Divine.
This material conveys the sense of anxiety and urgency generated by those date-setting Adventists and the corresponding urgency displayed by those who did not hold to their views.
Doug