[1] James Baker was a successful wholesale merchant who was active in the pre-Civil War anti-slavery movement and a close friend of Frederick Parker.

[1][2] Sutherland began her education at age three, around the time of her father's death,[2] attending private schools in Boston and later Geneva, Switzerland.

[3] While still in her teens she began submitting works to national publications and was among the first to be awarded a prize from the fledgling St. Nicholas Magazine, for her essay "What is a Gentleman?".

[4][5] Sutherland collaborated with General Charles King on the military play Ft. Frayne and with Booth Tarkington on Monsieur Beaucaire.

[3] Sutherland died at her Boston home on December 24, 1908, from burns she suffered when her gown brushed up against a gas stove and caught fire.