Charles Brodie Patterson (1854–1917) was a Canadian expatriate New Thought publisher, author, and editor. Patterson, a Canadian expatriate who lived in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, was labelled the movement's leader when he died in the early 20th century.

Biography

Patterson was born in 1854 in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. After graduating from the

Pictou Academy Pictou Academy (PA), founded in 1815 by Dr. Thomas McCulloch, is a secondary school in Pictou, Nova Scotia. Prior to the twentieth century, it was a grammar school; a liberal, nonsectarian degree-granting college; and then a secondary school. Pic ...

Pictou, Nova Scotia Pictou ( ; Canadian Gaelic: ''Baile Phiogto'') is a town in Pictou County, in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Located on the north shore of Pictou Harbour, the town is approximately 10 km (6 miles) north of the larger town of New Glas ...

, Patterson pursued mercantile activities. At 31, he moved to Hartford, Connecticut for treatment from a mental healer. He studied at the Mental Science Institute in the city and attended the Alliance of Divine Unity. In 1888, Patterson established the Metaphysical Alliance of Hartford, and served as president until 1904. In 1893, he opened the Alliance Publishing Company in New York City. He published books by New Thought and metaphysical authors including

Horatio Dresser Horatio Willis Dresser (January 15, 1866 – March 30, 1954) was a New Thought religious leader and author in the United States. In 1919 he became a minister of General Convention of the Church of the New Jerusalem, and served briefly at a Swede ...

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, and

Augustus Le Plongeon Augustus Henry Julian Le Plongeon (4 May 1825 – 13 December 1908) was a British-American archeologist and photographer who studied the pre-Columbian ruins of America, particularly those of the Maya civilization on the northern Yucatán Penins ...

. He edited ''Mind Magazine'' and the ''Library of Health journal'', as well as ''Arena'', the most influential New Thought publication of its time. Among his books, he published: ''Library of Health'' (1900), ''Dominion and Power, or, The science of life and living'' (1901), ''The Will to be Well'' (1902), ''The Measure of a Man'' (1907), ''A New Heaven and a New Earth, or, The Way to Life Eternal (thought studies of the fourth dimension)'' (1909), and ''The rhythm of life'' (1915). In addition to serving as a past president of the

International New Thought Alliance The International New Thought Alliance (INTA) is an umbrella organization for New Thought adherents "dedicated to serving the New Thought Movement’s various branches, organizations and individuals".

, Patterson was president of the International Metaphysical League from 1899 to 1903, and the later, the New Thought Federation. He died June 22, 1917, in New York City. Patterson was labelled the New Thought movement's leader upon his death.Mount, N.J. and Mount, N. (2005) ''When Canadian literature moved to New York.'' University of Toronto Press, 2005 . p 91.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Charles B. 1854 births 1917 deaths Canadian magazine editors New Thought writers Canadian publishers (people) Canadian religious writers 19th-century Canadian non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian male writers