Abstract :
The puritan pastor and writer, Richard Baxter, and a member of a prominent Derbyshire
family, Katherine Gell, exchanged a series of letters between 1655 and 1658. This article highlights the
existence of three further items of correspondence in this exchange, located in the Derbyshire Record Office,
hitherto believed not to be extant. The additional three letters are all penned by Baxter and include his replies
to her first two epistles (dated 28 July 1655 and 4 September 1655) as well as a reply to a non-extant Gell
letter (dated 31 July 1658). The correspondence provides valuable insights into Baxter’s pastoral methods
and the nature of puritan piety. The first two items draw attention to the importance of the dimension of duty
within Baxter’s pastoral agenda; while expressed in a context of warmth and encouragement, he believes that
Gell will find a measure of resolution to her spiritual struggles by careful attention to the obligations of
Christian living. The third letter, written some years later, after Baxter has discovered that Gell suffers from
melancholia, is couched in a gentler tone and reveals a more reciprocal dimension to their relationship.
