George White Baxter (January 7, 1855 – December 18, 1929) was an American politician who served as territorial governor of

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

from November 11, 1886 – December 20, 1886.

Early years

Baxter was born in

Hendersonville, North Carolina Hendersonville is a city in Henderson County, North Carolina, United States. It is south of Asheville and is the county seat of Henderson County. Like the county, the city is named for 19th-century North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Leon ...

on January 7, 1855, the son of Judge John Baxter and Orra Alexander Baxter.Charles A. Newell, Jr.,
John Baxter
" ''NCPedia'', 1979. Retrieved: 1 May 2013. When he was two years old, Baxter's family moved to

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

, where he lived much of his life. Baxter attended university in Knoxville but later continued his education at the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

at West Point. He left Knoxville and enrolled at West Point in 1873 and graduated in 1877. After graduating he was commissioned a second lieutenant and he served in the Third United States Cavalry for three years. Baxter arrived in Wyoming in 1881 after leaving the Army.

Political career

On November 11, 1886 Baxter was appointed the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the then-U.S. territory of Wyoming by President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

. He replaced Francis E. Warren, who faced scrutiny for his business dealings. Baxter's time as governor was short-lived, however; he served in the position until only December 20, 1886. He resigned the office and was replaced, temporarily by the Secretary of the Territory, Elliot S.N. Morgan. Baxter returned to politics in 1889, serving as a delegate to the Wyoming Constitutional Convention. Later, in 1890, he made an unsuccessful run for governor of Wyoming. He returned to Knoxville in 1892 and entered private business. Baxter was married to Margaret White McGhee, daughter of Knoxville businessman Charles McClung McGhee.Zella Armstrong,
Notable Southern Families
', Vol. 1 (Lookout Publishing Company, 1918), p. 149.

Death

Baxter died in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1929.

Early years

Political career

Death

References

Further reading