Mary C. Whitman Eddy papers

The Mary C. Whitman Eddy Papers consist of correspondence, a notebook, biographical information, photographs, and a portrait. These materials date from 1837-1875 and concern both her personal life and her work as a teacher and administrator at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. Most of her letters are addressed to Hannah Porter, wife of Mount Holyoke Trustee Andrew Porter. Eddy frequently discusses Mary Lyon, the health of students and teachers, and religious life at the Seminary. In a letter dated January 17, 1848 she mentions the presence of Emily Dickinson (then a student at Mount Holyoke) at a meeting of "those who felt unusually anxious to choose the service of God." Correspondence also refers to the work of alumnae missionaries, particularly Fidelia Fiske's activities in Persia, and the efforts of the National Board of Popular Education and other organizations to recruit teachers to serve in the western part of the United States. Correspondence also includes four applications for admission to Mount Holyoke and Eddy's letter of resignation to the Board of Trustees in the spring of 1850. The notebook that she kept from 1849-1850 describes the duties of teachers, the daily schedule, and domestic work activities. This volume also includes notes for her remarks on "What is Character?" and "What is it to be a steward?" and a list of "Groceries to be bought in Boston." Biographical information consists of a published notice of her marriage to Morton Eddy in 1851. There are two copies of a daguerreotype of her in these papers, circa 1850, and a copy of a portrait of her painted after her death in 1875.



Material from this collection is available in an online digital format.