"I am Jealous for the Honor of Our Sex:"

A Brief Biography of Judith Sargent Murray
by Bonnie Hurd Smith
Now available as a downloadable EBook (106 pages, illustrated, indexed).

Letters of Loss and Love: Judith Sargent Murray Papers, Letter Book 3
The second volume of Bonnie Hurd Smith's multi-year project to publish Judith Sargent Murray's letter books contains letters written during the years 1785 to 1789, transcribed in their entirety, indexed, and introduced by Smith. The letters in this volume document the end of Judith Sargent's marriage to the ship captain John Stevens Jr., his escape from Gloucester for the West Indies, and death. The letters also chronicle her brief poverty and widowhood, and her happy marriage to the Universalist preacher John Murray who was facing threats to his ministry, and their honeymoon visit with John and Abigail Adams. During these years, Judith also traveled to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, York, Maine, and parts of Rhode Island and Connecticut, all of which she described in her letters. (Soft cover, 492 pages, illustrated, indexed)

Mingling Souls Upon Paper: An Eighteenth-Century Love Story
The love story of the eighteenth-century essayist Judith Sargent and the Universalist preacher John Murray. Gloucester, Massachusetts native Judith Sargent Stevens was a twenty-three-year-old married woman when she first met John Murray, who was ten years her senior. They enjoyed a fourteen-year friendship together, including as pastor and congregant, before Judith's first husband, John Stevens Jr., died. Judith and John Murray's happy marriage lasted for twenty-seven years and produced a son, who died in childbirth, and a daughter, Julia Maria, who survived. Judith's letters chronicle her poignant, sometimes dramatic love story with John Murray. His letters do not survive. (Soft cover, 212 pages, illustrated, indexed)

The Letters I Left Behind: Judith Sargent Murray Papers, Letter Book 10
The first volume of Bonnie Hurd Smith's multi-year Letter Books Project contains letters written by Judith Sargent Murray from 1796 to 1799, while Judith was living in Boston, married to the Universalist preacher John Murray (who was serving Boston's Universalist congregation), and raising her daughter, Julia Maria. At the time, Judith was enjoying notoriety as a leading female essayist in America, particularly on the subjects of women's rights and female education. These letters document the process of publishing her landmark book, The Gleaner, including soliciting support from George Washington and John Adams, attracting subscribers from among the country's leading citizens, working with her publisher, and distributing the finished product. (Hard cover, 478 pages, illustrated, indexed)

From Gloucester to Philadelphia in 1790: Observations, thoughts,

and anecdotes from the letters of Judith Sargent Murray
On May 7, 1790, Judith Sargent Murray and her husband, the Universalist preacher John Murray, boarded a horse-drawn carriage for the beginning of a six-month journey from their home in Gloucester, Massachusetts to Philadelphia for the first national Universalist convention. Along the way, Judith met President George Washington and Martha Washington, visited with her friends John and Abigail Adams, sat through a session of Congress to observe the signing of the first treaty with the Creek Nation, and celebrated Independence Day on July 4 in Philadelphia. Throughout her journey, she wrote lengthy, descriptive letters home to family and friends. Excerpts from these letters have been used by Cokie Roberts, Susan Branson, and other historians. (Soft cover, 338 pages, illustrated, indexed)

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Independent scholar and author Bonnie Hurd Smith is the president and CEO of History Smiths, a marketing company that works with businesses to incorporate history -- their own and their community's -- into their branding, marketing, and community outreach to attract customers, boost customer loyalty, and secure a high status reputation in the communities they serve.