This collection contains the papers of Mary E. French of Dunstable, Massachusetts, who served as a missionary in India on two occasions in the late nineteenth century. Her letters, journal extracts, and manuscripts describe her experiences abroad while living and working in rural India. Also present is a letter from Captain Isaiah Bray, reporting on the voyage of the Morning Star to Micronesia in 1878-1879.

Folder 1 contains writings of Mary E. French about her missionary work in India. Included are letters (1875) from Midnapore in West Bengal, and extracts of her journal (1885-1886) from Khamgaon in Maharashtra. The journal extracts are partly handwritten, partly typed, and partly printed, as if they were being prepared for lecture or publication.

Folder 2 contains letters from "Lizzie", Mary Elizabeth French, to her sisters Susan and Sarah. The letters were written from 1874-1875 and 1883-1887 and span both of Mary French's trips to India. They describe in great detail her adventures and struggles while serving as a missionary there. Also in Folder 2 are single letters to Mary's nieces Nellie (Peabody) Fuller, Clara Hall, and Emily Hall, as well as fragments of other letters most likely addressed to her sisters. Folder 3 contains one letter to Mary E. French from Shewanti Canaran, inviting Mary to stay with her in Colabra and learn the language [Marathi].

Folder 4 contains the transcript of a long letter written in 1879 to Brother Hall from Captain Isaiah Bray, commander of the third Morning Star. Brother Hall is likely Samuel Hall, Mary E. French's brother-in-law. In this letter, possibly the only one written on this voyage, Captain Bray summarizes an eight-month voyage from Honolulu to the South Pacific, during which the ship visited 26 different islands (some more than once). Much of the letter deals with the role that religion played in the success of the voyage

Folder 5 contains an 18-page typewritten manuscript describing life in Kamgaon, India, and the surrounding area, especially the challenges of preaching the Christian gospel message to non-believers. The manuscript is not signed but was written by a female missionary, presumably Mary E. French. Folder 6 contains an 80-page handwritten report describing the customs of Indian Hindus in the area near Calcutta. It was written by a female missionary, again most likely Mary E. French, although it is unsigned. The author was a keen observer of daily life both within the home and in the town. The report concludes by arguing that Indian women are indebted to missionary ladies for their education and culture. Folder 7 contains poetry and ephemera including postage stamps and a card in Braille.