In a November 24, 1877 letter and an undated note, the John Eaton Papers provide insight into the career of an educational leader after the Civil War. In a letter to Eaton in Washington, D.C., E. O. Jade of Hidalgo, Whatcom County, Wash., writes to ask for advice in the creation and opening of new Christian school in the Puget Sound area. He also provides information on existing schools in the area, including a statement that the "Territorial University seems to have been launched & managed mostly by Politicians & they have succeeded in letting the money all slip." The undated note found in this collection informs that free schools have been opened in "well nigh every county of the state."