Sophia E. Perry was a resident of Gorham, Maine. The journal starts before she leaves for school in Massachusetts, and mainly covers her daily activities as she is preparing to leave. Arriving at school, she continues recording her daily activities, and her thoughts and feelings about teachers and other students at the school.

Religious thoughts figure prominently in this diary. The author is a member of the Tabernacle Congregational Church and on several occasions mentions the minister, Dr. Samuel Worcester. Several of the jounal entries mention her friend's conversions to Christianity. The books that she mentions reading are of a religious nature.

During the course of this diary several friends and family members die; her aunt died after being thrown from a carriage, but it is never made clear why several women her age die. The author is preoccupied with the deaths, and mentions them frequently along with a note about a friend with 'consumption,' and a comment about typhoid. However, there is no specific mention that either of these diseases were the cause of death of her friends.

Places mentioned include Gorham, Maine; Salem, Massachusetts; Portland, Maine; San Francisco, California.