Conrad Baker
Conrad Baker | |
---|---|
Will Cumback | |
Preceded by | Oliver P. Morton |
Succeeded by | Thomas A. Hendricks |
15th Lieutenant Governor of Indiana | |
In office January 9, 1865 – January 24, 1867 | |
Governor | Oliver P. Morton |
Preceded by | John R. Cravens as Acting Lieutenant Governor |
Succeeded by | William Cumback |
Indiana House of Representatives | |
In office December 5, 1845 – December 4, 1846 | |
Personal details | |
Born | February 12, 1817 Franklin County, Pennsylvania, USA |
Died | April 28, 1885 Evansville, Indiana, USA | (aged 68)
Political party | Republican |
Occupation | Lawyer, politician |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States Indiana |
Branch/service | Union Army |
Years of service | 1861–1864 |
Rank | Colonel |
Commands | 1st Indiana Cavalry Regiment |
Conrad Baker (February 12, 1817 – April 28, 1885) was an American attorney, military officer, and politician who served as state representative,
Early life
Family and background
Conrad Baker was born in
Early political career
Bakers closed his practice in 1841, and moved his family west to settle in Evansville, Indiana. He opened a new law office there, and took an interest in the city's civics. In 1845 he ran as the Whig candidate for representative of Vanderburgh County in the Indiana House of Representatives. He served one one-year term before returning to his practice. He was elected to serve on a county court in 1852 but resigned in 1854. His brother, William Baker, had also become active in the local politics, and served four terms as major of Evansville during the same time period.[2]
Baker was outspokenly anti-slavery, and following the break-up of the Whig party, he joined the newly formed Republican Party in 1854. At the state convention in 1856, he was nominated to run as lieutenant governor on the ticket with
American Civil War
Baker's wife, Matilda died in 1855, and Baker remarried in 1858 to Charlotte Frances Chute. The couple had two daughters and one son. He was in Evansville when the American Civil War began, and was part of a large crowd that gathered to discuss the event. He took the podium and delivered a speech calling on the crowd to take an oath of allegiance to the Union, which was administered by his brother, the Mayor. He then called on all the able-bodied men to follow him to war. Baker and his brother began actively recruiting a full regiment of men to serve in the war, and he was promoted to serve as Colonel of the 1st Regiment Indiana Cavalry.[3]
Baker led his regiment in defensive and garrison duty across the western theater of the war, and remained in regular communication with Governor
Governor
Acting
Baker left the army in 1864 to run again as Lieutenant Governor on the ticket with
Second term
In 1868, Baker was reelected to the position of governor, defeating
Baker's most difficult goal to achieve was the ratification of the post-war amendments that, among other things, banned slavery and granted blacks the right to vote. His advocacy on the issues, though, managed to secure each of their ratifications, with the fourteenth amendment being the last ratified in 1869. The Democrats had resigned office en masse when the bill was put up for a vote to deny quorum, but the Republicans went ahead to approve the amendment. When the Democrats took the legislature in the following election, they revoked the ratification of the amendments, but it was too late and the federal government, which was Republican-dominated at the time, had already added them to the constitution.[6]
Baker also advocated for African American rights through additional school reform. In 1869 he signed legislation which addressed an 1865 school law which prevented the establishment of public schools for non-white children. The new law extended current public school funding to establish schools for African Americans and repealed all laws inconsistent herewith.[7]
Death and legacy
After Baker's term as governor expired he retired from public office and reopened his law office. His new partner was his former political opponent, Thomas Hendricks. After Hendricks was elected governor in 1872, Baker took on state attorney general
Baker remained active in public affairs and urged the state schools to grant equal opportunities. He became fairly active in the woman's suffrage movement and delivered an address to one of their meetings. He died on April 28, 1885, and was buried in Evansville, Indiana.[8][9]
See also
References
Notes
- ^ Gugin, p. 152
- ^ a b Gugin, p. 153
- ^ a b c Gugin, p. 154
- ^ Gugin, p. 155
- ^ Gugin, p. 158
- ^ Gugin, p. 156
- ^ Indiana. General Assembly, House of Representatives (1869). Journal of the House of Representatives of the state of Indiana, during the special session of the General Assembly, commencing Thursday, April 8, 1869. Indiana Memory Program Indiana State Library. Indianapolis : Alexander H. Conner, state printer, 1869.
- ^ Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 1, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols
- ^ Gugin, p. 159
Bibliography
- Gugin, Linda C.; St. Clair, James E, eds. (2006). The Governors of Indiana. Indianapolis, Indiana: Indiana Historical Society Press. ISBN 0-87195-196-7.
- Mueller, Arnold Ernst R., "Conrad Baker, Former Governor of Indiana" (1944). Graduate Thesis Collection. 412. https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/grtheses/412.