Before it became a business, Anne Hutchinson lived in this building. She used to hold religious meetings in her home, where she would read scripture. Sometimes as many as 80 people would come to the meetings. This was more than 10% of Boston's population at the time. Eventually Hutchinson was accused of heresy for preaching without being a preacher. (At that time, no women were allowed to be preachers, and Hutchinson's ideas also disagreed with the Puritans'.) Hutchinson was excommunicated and exiled to Rhode Island in 1638.