2014 Reprint of 1887 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This is an exact reprint of the 1777 edition printed at Boston by Edward Draper. The first edition of the primer was printed as early as 1690 but no known copy exists before 1761. "The New England Primer" was the first reading primer designed for the American Colonies. It became the most successful educational textbook published in 18th century America and it became the foundation of most schooling before the 1790s. In the 17th century, the schoolbooks in use had been brought over from England. By 1690, Boston publishers were reprinting the "English Protestant Tutor" under the title of "The New England Primer." The Primer included additional material that made it widely popular with colonial schools until it was supplanted by Noah Webster's "Blue Back Speller" after 1790.