by By Jewel Spangler Smaus
Illustrated with photographs by Gordon Noble Converse
used, mark on cover
Foreword
Ten years of painstaking research have gone into making of this book. It is written for young people, though it is hoped it will be of interest to all ages, since much of the material on which it is based has never before been examined.
Historical reconstruction has become a popular method for bringing history to life, and this is the presentation which I have used. Town histories, maps, almanacs, gazetteers, diaries, journals, paintings, photographs, artifacts - all these and more - have played their part.
Two years were spent with my family living in the town of Bow, New Hampshire, where Mary Baker was born and lived her childhood. Here the citizens, the town clerk, the selectmen were most generous in their assistance; similar help was found in the adjoining city of Concord, as well as in Pembroke, Sanbornton, and Tilton.
Old town records inaccessible before have finally been brought to light. My husband and two boys discovered forgotten landmarks, as they hiked the forests and meadows of Bow, retracing overgrown roads and paths used by the Baker family and their neighbors.
When we returned to our native California, there were additional years of research, during which many trips were made to New England, continuing the quest for material concerning Mary Baker and her family. I am particularly grateful to the residents of Sanbornton and Tilton who opened their memories as well as the attics of their homes during this period of historical reconstruction. Of special interest was the well-stuffed attic of the Sanbornton Town Hall where boxes of old records concerning Mark Baker and his family were found.
The resulting wealth of factual material has yielded an authentic story of the childhood and youth of Mary Baker - the golden days - a story that has never been told before.
With gratitude I acknowledge the generous assistance of the New Hampshire Historical Society, in Concord, New Hampshire. This organization formed well over a hundred years ago has much vital material relating to the Bakers and their period. Special thanks also must go to the Trustees of Longyear Foundation, in Brookline, Massachusetts, for granting unlimited access to the Foundation's priceless collection of Baker letters and papers, as well as personal possessions of the Baker family.
I am also deeply grateful to the Board of Trustees of The Christian Science Publishing Society or initiating and supporting the project and to The Christian Science Board of Directors for their constant encouragement and continuing interest. The Archives of The Mother Church have of course given invaluable assistance in the historical research. . . .
It has been a great joy for me to have come to know intimately during these past ten years Mary Baker, her mother and father, brothers and sisters, the Bow and Sanbornton years - as well as to trace the influence of these years in the momentous time that followed.
J.S.S.
Los Altos, California, June 1966