Mary Alice Dayton (1855-1940) was born in Quincy, Illinois, and died in Boston, Massachusetts. She considered herself a spiritual seeker and believer in spiritual healing from a young age, and in the mid-1880s, seeking help along those lines for a friend in need, she borrowed a copy of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures from an acquaintance. Examining the book herself, Dayton experienced healing of a longstanding ailment. Soon afterward she learned that William G. Ewing, a close friend of her family's, and who later became Mary Baker Eddy's student, had experienced healing through Christian Science treatment, and thereafter she began studying Science and Health in earnest.
Dayton studied Christian Science with Eddy's student Augusta E. Stetson and went on to take the Primary class in Christian Science from Eddy in February 1889. At the closing of the class, Eddy's student Joshua F. Bailey, then the editor of The Christian Science Journal, requested the class members to submit their writings for publication. In response to that call, Dayton composed a poem entitled "Potter and Clay." It was published in the September 1890 Journal and was then included as a hymn in the Christian Science Hymnal in 1892. Dayton moved to Wilmington, Delaware, in 1889 to help establish Christian Science there. She relocated to Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1893, and in about 1896 she moved to Boston, where she remained. Dayton joined The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, on October 5, 1892.
Her mother, Sarah B. Dayton (b. Catlin), and her sister, Lucy D. Phelps (b. Dayton), also Stetson's students, both joined on July 1, 1893. All three became practitioners listed in the Journal, with Dayton maintaining her listing from 1891 until her passing. She began teaching Sunday school in The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1896 and continued doing so for many years. She was also a Christian Science teacher. She joined First Church of Christ, Scientist, Concord, New Hampshire, in 1904, and was a member of the Christian Scientist Association, the National Christian Scientist Association, the Christian Science Dispensary Association, and the General Association of Teachers. Dayton continued writing articles for publication in the Christian Science periodicals throughout her life.
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Mary Alice Dayton (1855-1940) was born in Quincy, Illinois, and died in Boston, Massachusetts. She considered herself a spiritual seeker and believer in spiritual healing from a young age, and in the mid-1880s, seeking help along those lines for a friend in need, she borrowed a copy of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures from an acquaintance. Examining the book herself, Dayton experienced healing of a longstanding ailment. Soon afterward she learned that William G. Ewing, a close friend of her family's, and who later became Mary Baker Eddy's student, had experienced healing through Christian Science treatment, and thereafter she began studying Science and Health in earnest.
Dayton studied Christian Science with Eddy's student Augusta E. Stetson and went on to take the Primary class in Christian Science from Eddy in February 1889. At the closing of the class, Eddy's student Joshua F. Bailey, then the editor of The Christian Science Journal, requested the class members to submit their writings for publication. In response to that call, Dayton composed a poem entitled "Potter and Clay." It was published in the September 1890 Journal and was then included as a hymn in the Christian Science Hymnal in 1892. Dayton moved to Wilmington, Delaware, in 1889 to help establish Christian Science there. She relocated to Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1893, and in about 1896 she moved to Boston, where she remained. Dayton joined The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, on October 5, 1892.
Her mother, Sarah B. Dayton (b. Catlin), and her sister, Lucy D. Phelps (b. Dayton), also Stetson's students, both joined on July 1, 1893. All three became practitioners listed in the Journal, with Dayton maintaining her listing from 1891 until her passing. She began teaching Sunday school in The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1896 and continued doing so for many years. She was also a Christian Science teacher. She joined First Church of Christ, Scientist, Concord, New Hampshire, in 1904, and was a member of the Christian Scientist Association, the National Christian Scientist Association, the Christian Science Dispensary Association, and the General Association of Teachers. Dayton continued writing articles for publication in the Christian Science periodicals throughout her life.
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