John Baker (Indiana politician)

John Baker
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Indiana
In office March 29, 1892 – December 8, 1902
Appointed by	Benjamin Harrison
Preceded by	William Allen Woods
Succeeded by	Albert B. Anderson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 13th district
In office March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1881
Preceded by	District established
Succeeded by	William H. Calkins
Personal details
Born	John Harris Baker (1832-02-28)February 28, 1832 Parma, New York
Died	October 21, 1915(1915-10-21) (aged 83) Goshen, Indiana
Resting place	Oakridge Cemetery Goshen, Indiana
Political party	Republican
Relatives	Lucien Baker
Residence(s)	Goshen, Indiana
Education	Wesleyan University (A.M.) read law

John Harris Baker (February 28, 1832 – October 21, 1915) was a three-term United States representative from Indiana (1875 to 1881) and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Indiana.

Education and career

Born on February 28, 1832, in Parma, Monroe County, New York, Baker moved with his parents to what is now Fulton County, Ohio, where he attended and later taught in the common schools. He received an Artium Magister degree in 1879 from Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio. He read law in Adrian, Michigan and was admitted to the bar in 1857. He entered private practice in Goshen, Indiana from 1857 to 1875. He unsuccessfully challenged the election of Charles Lefferts Murray to the Indiana Senate in 1863, but his challenge failed and he was never seated, although he was paid as if he had been a state senator.

Congressional service

Baker was elected as a Republican from Indiana's 13th congressional district to the United States House of Representatives of the 44th, 45th and 46th United States Congresses, serving from March 4, 1875, to March 3, 1881.

After Congress

He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1880. Baker resumed private practice in Goshen from 1881 to 1892. He was a delegate to the 1888 Republican National Convention.

Federal judicial service

Baker was nominated by President Benjamin Harrison on March 24, 1892, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Indiana vacated by Judge William Allen Woods. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 29, 1892, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on December 8, 1902, due to his retirement.

Retirement and death

Following his retirement, Baker resided in Goshen. He died on October 21, 1915, in Goshen. He is interred in Oakridge Cemetery in Goshen.

Family

Baker was the brother of Lucien Baker, a United States senator from Kansas.

Sources

• "Memorial Meeting of the State Bar Association of Indiana in Memory of Hon. John H. Baker," in Report of the Twentieth Annual Meeting of the State Bar Association of Indiana, Held at Lafayette, Indiana, July 13 and 14, 1916. Indianapolis: Harrington and Folger for the Association, n.d. [1916].
• John Harris Baker at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
• United States Congress. "John Baker (id: B000068)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
•  This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress