Eddy, Mary Morse Baker

Title

Eddy, Mary Morse Baker

Date

Born July 16, 1821

Died December 3, 1910

Description

Mary Morse Baker Eddy is the founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Early in her life, she worked as a substitute teacher and ran a kindergarten. Eddy struggled with chronic issues from the time she was a child and throughout her entire life. She was a patient of mental healer Phineas Quimby and his beliefs greatly influenced her work. In 1866, during a particularly debilitating spell following a fall, Eddy requested a Bible and felt healed. She later referred to this moment as the "discovery" of Christian Science. After that, she began studying and speaking out about healing as a mental, faith-based practice, rather than one aided by medicine. In 1879, the Church of Christ, Scientist was born. Two years later, in 1881, she founded the Massachusetts Metaphysical College in Boston. The School granted degrees, mostly to women, and equipped students with the Church's teachings and practices to further spread the word, turning the Church of Christ, Scientist nationally-recognized institution. Eddy was also a prolific writer on the same topic. She created three magazines, "The Christian Science Journal" in 1883, the "Christian Science Sentinel" in 1898, and "The Herald of Christian Science" in 1903. She was also the founder of the newspaper "The Christian Science Monitor," which was started in 1908 as a rejection to "yellow journalism" and went on to win a Pulitzer Prize. Additionally, Eddy was the author of many articles and books, one of which, "Science and Health" laid out all of her core beliefs and was the first book to be published through the publishing company she helped to create, the Christian Science Publishing Society.

Eddy was married three times. She wed George Washington Glover and 1843, but he died within a year, leaving Eddy pregnant with their son, George Washington. Due to restrains put on single mothers, Eddy's child was sent away when he was 4 and she was only able to see him sporadically throughout his life, losing touch for decades. In 1853, she married Daniel Patterson, divorcing after his affair 20 years later in 1873. In 1877, she was remarried to Asa Gilbert Eddy, who passed away the following year. Eddy died in 1910.

Place

Bow, Merrimack, New Hampshire

Tilton, Belknap, New Hampshire

Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina

Lynn, Essex, Massachussetts

Boston, Suffolk, Massachussetts

Contributor

Biebrich, Caitlin

Relation

(?) Mary Baker Glover Eddy Marker

Source

Wikipedia

Find-A-Grave

National Women's Hall of Fame