On Jan. 1, 1740, Anglican evangelist George Whitefield, the most famous revivalist of the Great Awakening in colonial America, stopped at a nearby tavern on his way to Savannah. Because it was New Year’s Day and the crowd was dancing country dances, he wrote in his diary that he believed they wished he had not come to be their guest. Whitefield, who believed dancing was a sin, tried to convince a woman dancing a jig how well-pleased the devil was with every step she took. Although she kept dancing and the fiddler kept fiddling, they soon stopped and allowed Whitefield to preach and baptize a child. Once he retired for the night, however, the New Year’s spirit prevailed, and the music and dancing resumed.