Samuel Fallows (1835-1922) was born in Pendleton, Lancashire, England, and died in Chicago, Illinois. Fallows was a bishop and head of the Reformed Episcopal Church. He emigrated to Deansville, Wisconsin, with his parents in 1848, and in 1858, was ordained a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church. He attended the University of Wisconsin, graduating with bachelor's (1859) and master's (1862) degrees. After completing his studies, he enlisted as a chaplain in the Wisconsin 32nd Volunteer Infantry and later served in Wisconsin's 40th Volunteer Infantry. In 1865, he was appointed colonel of the Wisconsin 49th Volunteer Infantry and was later brevetted brigadier general. In 1873, he received a doctorate from Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin. In 1875, he abandoned Methodism, accepting the rectorship of St. Paul's Reformed Episcopal Church in Chicago. He was appointed a bishop the following year. Later, in the March 1885 issue of Mind in Nature, he published an attack on Christian Science to which Mary Baker Eddy responded with an article titled "Christian Science," published in the June 1885 edition of Mind in Nature. At the beginning of the 20th century, Fallows renewed his public attacks on Christian Science and also developed his own system of mental healing which was explained in his book Science of Health (1903). Fallows was a popular social reformer in Illinois, helping to advance education, public health, and the rights of African Americans. At the time of his passing, he lay in state in Chicago and in the weeks after, a series of exercises was held to commemorate his life.

See more letters.