From The Papers: Frequently asked questions

Occasionally in this article series we respond to questions we receive about the Mary Baker Eddy Papers. We hope that sharing these answers with everyone will benefit all visitors to this website, as they discover more of what it has to offer.

What can I see on the Mary Baker Eddy Papers site?

You’ll find annotated transcriptions and images of original scanned documents from the Mary Baker Eddy Collection, which comprises all of Mary Baker Eddy’s incoming and outgoing correspondence. The earliest document on the site is from 1836. For the most part, we are publishing documents chronologically, allowing you to follow the story as it unfolds.¹ We’ve just finished transcribing and annotating documents for the year 1886.

In support of other organizational projects and priorities, we have also published some documents dating beyond 1886. One project we’re particularly excited about involves new online editions of Robert Peel’s Mary Baker Eddy biographies, which are available as part of a JSH-Online subscription. The new online editions of Years of Discovery and Years of Trial have updated footnotes that include links to documents published on the Papers site. We expect that the added context provided through easy access to these complete letters will really enrich the experience of reading the biographies.

In addition to the documents themselves, we’ve provided various pathways for you to begin exploring the site. These include curated stories, an interactive map, essays, and several reference lists.

What can I learn about Christian Science history on the Papers site?

Even though our site is called “The Mary Baker Eddy Papers,” the available documents tell a much larger story about the early Christian Science movement. You can learn about early Christian Scientists you may never have heard of before, who played important roles in sharing Christian Science with their communities. We love reading the letters from individuals who were discovering Christian Science for the first time, learning how to practice it, and writing to Eddy about their challenges and victories.

What is the best place to start exploring the Papers?

A great place to start—particularly if you’re not sure what you’re looking for—is a new feature called “Story Paths.” This provides a good sense for the kinds of things you’ll find when you visit the site. Each story path features a selection of annotated documents, along with articles and podcast episodes, on a specific topic. For example, you can find out the difference one early Christian Scientist made by exploring the story of Jennie Fenn, who shared the new religion across Nebraska and Iowa. Or learn about Mary Baker Eddy’s experiences during the American Civil War. We’ll continue adding more story paths as time goes on. Perhaps something from one of the Story Paths will pique your interest, and you’ll continue reading more of the related documents.

You can use the search feature in the top right corner to continue digging more deeply into a topic of interest. Click on “Advanced” to open a form with options that further narrow your search. Remember—you may need to search on several similar words to find what you are looking for.

How can I find out if there were early Christian Scientists in my hometown?

Our Map of Letters to Eddy is a great place to find out about the first Christian Scientists in your area. Each pin on the map represents a letter she received. You can use the timeline slider at the bottom to isolate letters from a specific year, or to see the spread of Christian Science over time. For example, try zooming in on Chicago, Illinois. You’ll see that in 1882 there were no letters written to Eddy from that area. But over the next few years, the number of letters grew into tens, and then hundreds, as Christian Science took root there. But that didn’t just happen in big cities. You’ll also watch individual pins spread across the United States—and then into Canada, the United Kingdom, and beyond.

When you say that the transcriptions are “annotated,” what does that mean? What kinds of details do you add?

Annotations consist of all the contextual information we’ve added to the individual documents. These appear as “pop-ups” when you click or hover on them. We’ve added the annotations to provide helpful details that will enable you to better understand the documents. For example, if a letter mentions “Mrs. Clark,” and we know who she was, we will link to the short biography of her that we’ve prepared on our People Reference List. Or if the author of a letter is alluding to a particular Bible verse, the full verse will appear in the pop-up. If a certain place or event is mentioned in a letter, and we can identify it, that information will appear in a pop-up as well.

We also provide currency conversions in our annotation, which can be helpful in understanding the cost of different items at a given time. For example, William H. H. Saunders wrote to Eddy from Troy, NY, sending $3.00 for a copy of Science and Health. You’ll see in the pop-up explaining that this was equivalent to $100.06 in 2024 dollars. Even though a single copy of the book was quite expensive, the cost didn’t stop other students, such as Eddy’s student John P. Filbert, from ordering a dozen copies at a time. While students were able to resell the copies they ordered, it was nonetheless a significant upfront investment, requiring trust in the growing interest and demand for copies of Science and Health in their communities. Simple details like these show that people saw the value of Science and Health as essential to learning about Christian Science.

How can I continue learning more about the Mary Baker Eddy Papers?

Our website is available anywhere, anytime. We hope you’ll visit often to see the new documents we’ve added! If you aren’t already doing so, subscribe to our quarterly email newsletter—it’s a great way to continue learning about the latest findings from the Mary Baker Eddy Papers. This is separate from the Library’s monthly newsletter, and we pull together stories that you won’t find anywhere else. You can sign up here on The Mary Baker Eddy Library website.

What else would you like to know about the Mary Baker Eddy Papers? Please email us at [email protected].