According to wikipedia:

"Former Southern Baptist Convention President W.A. Criswell (1969-1970) welcomed Roe v. Wade, saying that ""I have always felt that it was only after a child was born and had a life separate from its mother that it became an individual person," the redoubtable fundamentalist declared, "and it has always, therefore, seemed to me that what is best for the mother and for the future should be allowed." This was a common attitude among evangelicals at the time. Criswell would later reverse himself on his earlier position."

I've also heard it said elsewhere that prior to the 1980s, most evangelicals regard abortion as a "catholic" issue and that the change was due more to political wrangling than actual religious convictions. Is this true?

How did evangelical Christians go from largely being apathetic or supportive of abortion rights to being so fiercely against the practice?