Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910), founder of the Christian Science Church, ran the Massachusetts Metaphysical College here (1882-1889), teaching 4,000+ students and conducting services.
Nineteenth-century women held key reform meetings at this site, including Mary Rice Livermore (1820-1905) on suffrage and Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) on religious reform.
Located at the top of the Grand Staircase, the mural "Notable Women of Boston" by Ellen Lanyon (1926-2013) honors trailblazing women in American and Boston culture.
The State House honors abolitionists Angelina and Sarah Grimké, reformer Dorothea Dix, and other pioneers featured in the Notable Women of Boston mural.