Laurence S. Baker

Laurence Simmons Baker
Laurence Simmons Baker
	Laurence Simmons Baker; photo taken between 1861 and 1865
Born	May 15, 1830; Gates County, North Carolina
Died	April 10, 1907 (aged 76); Suffolk, Virginia
Place of burial	Cedar Hill Cemetery, Suffolk, Virginia
Allegiance	United States of America; Confederate States of America;
Service/branch	United States Army; Confederate States Army
Years of service	1851–61 (USA); 1861–65 (CSA);
Rank	First Lieutenant (USA); Brigadier General (CSA);
Battles/wars	American Civil War Peninsula Campaign; Seven Days Battle; Second Battle of Bull Run; Battle of Antietam; Battle of Brandy Station; Battle of Gettysburg; Battle of Bentonville;
Other work	farmer, railroad station agent

Laurence Simmons Baker (May 15, 1830 – April 10, 1907) was an officer in the

brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. His first name was spelled Lawrence in the records of the Confederate War Department^[1]

and the mistaken spelling has persisted.

Early life and career

Baker was born on the Cole's Hill Plantation in

second lieutenant earning his full rank on Mar. 31, 1853. He served for nine years in the U.S. Mounted Rifles, assigned to duty on the western frontier and rising to the rank of first lieutenant.^[2]

On 13 Mar 1855, Laurence Baker married Elizabeth E. Henderson (1836–1918).

Civil War

In May 1861, he resigned his commission when

Seven Days Battle, Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas), and Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg) later in 1862.^[3]

During the

brigadier general on July 23, 1863, in recognition for his valiant service covering the retreat of the Army of Northern Virginia. Eight days later, he was severely wounded in the right arm while resisting a Federal crossing of the Rappahannock River, and was incapacitated for nearly a year.^[3]

After recovering enough for administrative duty, Baker was named commander of the Second Military District in his home state of North Carolina, overseeing the defense of vital railroads and supply lines. He briefly led a brigade into

Carolinas Campaign, including the Battle of Bentonville. He and most of his men did not surrender at the end of the war, preferring to try to cut his way through Union lines to join Joseph E. Johnston's army. Instead, he disbanded his brigade and the remaining men dispersed. Baker received his formal parole in Raleigh, North Carolina, in May 1865.^[3]

Postbellum activities

After the war, Baker lived at New Bern, North Carolina, for a while before moving to Norfolk, Virginia, as a farmer. After returning to North Carolina, he was engaged in insurance until 1877. The next year, he joined the Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad in Suffolk, VA as a station agent, serving for 29 years. His duties included managing the Western Union telegraph and the Southern Express Co., a shipping company.

He was a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Suffolk, Virginia, and was active in the local camp of the United Confederate Veterans. He died in Suffolk in 1907 and was buried in the city's Cedar Hill Cemetery.

Due to a clerical error in the War Department, in some official military documents, his first name is frequently misspelled as "Lawrence".^[4]