Jesse Randall Baxter, Jr. (December 8, 1887 – January 29, 1960), known professionally as J.R. Baxter and sometimes referred to as "Pap", was an American

Southern Gospel Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as ...

composer and publisher.

Biography

He was born on December 8, 1887, in Lebanon, Alabama.WWI draft registration He was a farmer and married Clarice Howard in 1918. He studied with Thomas B. Mosley and

Anthony Johnson Showalter Anthony Johnson Showalter (May 1, 1858 – September 14, 1924) was an American gospel music composer, teacher and publisher. He was born in Cherry Grove, Virginia. Showalter was trained in the Ruebush-Kieffer School of Music and was teaching ...

, and in 1926 bought a stake in Virgil O. Stamps'

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

publishing company. The

Stamps-Baxter Music & Printing Company The Stamps-Baxter Music Company was an influential publishing company in the shape note Southern gospel music field. The company issued several paperback publications each year with cheap binding and printed on cheap paper. Thus, the older books ...

became one of the leading publishers of gospel songs in the early 20th century. Baxter ran the company's

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, office until Stamps's death in 1940; following this Baxter moved to

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, to run the main office. Baxter's interest in school teaching led him to publish

shape-note Shape notes are a musical notation designed to facilitate congregational and social singing. The notation, introduced in late 18th century England, became a popular teaching device in American singing schools. Shapes were added to the notehe ...

songbooks and sponsor a Stamps-Baxter School of Music, both of which contributed to the popularity of Gospel music. Baxter also composed Gospel songs himself; his works include "Try Jesus", "Travel the Sunlit Way", "Something Happens (When You Give Your Heart to God)", "I Have Peace in My Soul", "Living Grace", and "I Want to Help Some Weary Pilgrim". He died on January 29, 1960, in

Legacy

After Baxter's death, his wife continued to run the business until she died, after which it was sold to

Zondervan Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Publ ...

. In 1997, Baxter was inducted into the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame.

Footnotes

References

*Ivan M. Tribe
J.R. Baxter
''Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music''.

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

, 2005, p. 32.
J.R. Baxter
Southern Gospel Music Association {{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, J.R. 1887 births 1960 deaths American gospel singers American music publishers (people) Composers of Christian music 20th-century American singers