The name of Mary Wake is written at the front of the volume, f.1v: "Mary Wake Canterbury December ye 3: 1730", however the book contains several different hands and, according to internal evidence, covers a period of at least 90 years and therefore must have more than one author. The name Mary is also written in pencil on ff.13v-14r, although the surnames could not be deciphered. (On f.21r the words "I am very good very good" is written in pencil, possibly by the same hand as that on f.13v)