Nathaniel Prentiss Banks (1816-1894) was born and died in Waltham, Massachusetts. He was a politician and Union Army General during the Civil War. Banks' early life was spent working in textile mills in Waltham. In 1844 and 1847, Banks ran unsuccessfully for seats in the Massachusetts legislature. He was eventually elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1848, a position he held until 1853 when he was elected to the United States House of Representatives. In February 1856, he was chosen as Speaker of the House, serving until March 1857 when he stepped down and successfully ran for governor of Massachusetts. He served as governor from 1858 until 1861, when he enlisted in the Union Army to fight in the Civil War. Banks had several commands and fought in many campaigns, but he is noted for his command of the Army of the Gulf and implementation of Reconstruction in Louisiana. After the war, he returned to politics and won reelection to the United States House of Representatives, serving from 1865 until 1879. At the time Mary Baker Eddy wrote to Banks, he was serving as the United States Marshal for Massachusetts, a position he held from 1879 until 1888, when he once again won election to Congress. He retired from Congress in 1891 due to ill health.

See more letters.