New England Company , missionary society

The New England Company was a missionary society, originally founded by Act of Parliament in 1649 and chartered in 1662 as the "Company for the propagation of the gospel in New England and the parts adjacent in America". The Company sent missionaries and teachers to New England, and later further afield to New York and Virginia. Groups of Commissioners, often prominent local citizens, were appointed by the Company to oversee its affairs in New England, with the Governor of Massachusetts usually acting as Chairman.

The American War of Independence forced the Company to rethink its theatre of operations. Thereafter, efforts were concentrated on native tribes in Canada, and on the West Indies. In the 19th century the Company extended its work in Canada, increasingly in conjunction with local bishops and the Canadian Government's Department of Indian Affairs. In the 20th century, the Company handed over its remaining schools to the Department of Indian Affairs and concentrated on managing its estates in England, the proceeds from which are sent to the bishops in Canada for distribution.