William R. Ellis (1827-1868) was born in Dover, New Hampshire, and died in New York. He worked as a merchant and married Mary J. Webster in Amesbury, Massachusetts, in 1847. Mary Baker Eddy spent some time living in Mary B. Webster's home when she first arrived in Amesbury in 1867. In June 1868, she was evicted by Ellis, who was Webster's son-in-law, as the family had become disenchanted with Eddy's views.

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