Simmons Jones Baker
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Simmons Jones Baker (February 15, 1775 – August 18, 1853) was a physician, planter, legislator, and slave owner in
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
.


Early life and education

Baker was born in Hertford County on February 15, 1775, to Lawrence Baker and Ann Jones. His mother died when he was quite young and he therefore lived for part of his childhood with an aunt in
Southampton County, Virginia Southampton County is a county located on the southern border of the Commonwealth of Virginia. North Carolina is to the south. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 17,996. Its county seat is Courtland. History In the earl ...
. During this time he attended the same school run by Rev. Henry John Burges that
William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was the ninth president of the United States, serving from March 4 to April 4, 1841, the shortest presidency in U.S. history. He was also the first U.S. president to die in office, causin ...
attended. Baker traveled to Great Britain in 1793 at the age of eighteen to study medicine. As was customary at the time there is no evidence of him ever earning a medical degree. However, he did receive certificates from two of the more famous medical facilities in Britain at the time:
St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, together with Guy's Hospital, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton Hospita ...
in London and the
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. During this trip he carried with him an armorial seal that had been passed down through his family. He took the seal to the
College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...
to inquire if any living Bakers in England were still using the same arms. The only one was Sir George Baker, the physician of
King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...
. Baker visited this Dr. Baker on a future trip to consult about a personal illness. The consultation was success and in gratitude he would later name his first son George.


Adulthood

Baker returned from his medical studies in Britain in 1795 and married, in October of that year, Polly Smith of Halifax County. The couple built a house named Greenwood in 1796 on the plantation given to them by Polly's grandfather near the current town of Scotland Neck. Four years later he sold that plantation and moved to Martin County. Baker was made a trustee of the State Bank of North Carolina in 1811. Polly Smith Baker died in 1812 following the birth of their eighth child. In 1814 Baker was remarried to Ann Cleverius who died in 1843. Baker moved to Florida in 1828 and acquired a large amount of land near the present town of Marianna where he lived intermittently with Raleigh for a decade, ultimately staying in Raleigh until his death.


Legislator

Baker represented Martin County in the State House of Commons (now known as the State House of Representatives) from 1814 to 1816 and then in the
State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...
from 1816 to 1818. While in the Senate Baker was in a group who, in excitement over the news of the
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, investigated the possibility of constructing a canal from Raleigh to
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. The plan was ultimately abandoned. Baker was also involved in the legislation that created the
Supreme Court of North Carolina The Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina is the state of North Carolina's highest appellate court. Until the creation of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in the 1960s, it was the state's only appellate court. The Supreme Court consists ...
.


Freemason

Baker was initiated into
Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...
in 1812 in Concord Lodge No. 58 in Tarboro. His lodge elected him to represent them at the Grand Lodge assembly in 1814. He would later be elected Grand Master of the state of North Carolina in 1832 and again in 1840. It was in this capacity that Baker laid the cornerstone of the
state capitol A capitol, or seat of government, is the building or complex of buildings from which a government such as that of a U.S. state, the District of Columbia, or the organized territories of the United States, exercises its authority. Although m ...
building in Raleigh on July 4, 1833.


Physician, Educator, Religious Layman

The oral tradition in the region indicates Dr. Baker was a well known and well respected physician, but there is little evidence to prove this. He was however made an honorary member of the North Carolina Medical Society when it was formed in 1849 and two of his sons-in-law and his ward were all physicians, likely his students. In the field of education, Baker served as trustee of the Vine Hill Academy when it was first chartered in 1809 as well as serving as a trustee of the
University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...
from 1812 until his death. Within the Episcopal Church Baker was one of the founders of Trinity Church in Scotland Neck, North Carolina as well as St. Luke's Church in Marianna, Florida.


Legacy

Dr. Baker died on August 18, 1853, in Raleigh leaving behind eight adult children including his oldest son James Lawrence George Baker, who was a member of the North Carolina General Assembly in 1832, and Simmons Jones Baker Jr., who was one of the signers of the Ordinance of the Secession of Florida in January 1861. Through Simmons Baker Jr.'s influence in the area, the town of
Greenwood, Florida Greenwood is a town in Jackson County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Florida Panhandle and located in North Florida, specifically Northwest Florida. The population was 539 at the 2020 census. History The ''Town of Greenwood'' was set ...
was named for his father's plantation in Halifax County, North Carolina. Baker also left behind 163 slaves when he died who were carefully appraised by the executors of his estate. He furthermore provided for the maintenance of superannuated (retired due to age or infirmity) slaves in his will.


External links


Detailed Listing of Slaves Owned by Dr. Simmons J. Baker at the time of his death


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Simmons Jones Physicians from North Carolina Members of the North Carolina House of Representatives North Carolina state senators 1775 births 1853 deaths Masonic grand masters People from Hertford County, North Carolina U.S. state legislators who owned slaves 19th-century members of the North Carolina General Assembly