Baker, James Addison

After his first wife died in January 1852, Baker moved to Huntsville and practiced law there for about two decades, according to a biography that cites Kirkland and the Handbook of Texas. A special election in May 1862 put him on the bench of the 7th Texas Judicial District, which sat in Houston. He heard his first case in December 1862, his last ended June 1, 1865, and Reconstruction authorities later removed him. He moved to Houston, where the firm took the name Gray, Botts and Baker. He died there on February 24, 1897, and was buried in Huntsville.

What the plaque says

Baker, James Addison James Addison Baker was born to Jane Saxton and Elijah Adam Baker on March 3, 1821 near Huntsville, Alabama. He was admitted to the Bar in 1843 and wed Caroline Hightower in 1849. She died in 1852, and he moved that year to join her family members in Huntsville, Texas, where he established a law practice. The next year, he wed Rowena Crawford. The two worked together to advance Huntsville education. An active Mason and Presbyterian, Baker also became a successful politician, jurist and soldier. In 1872, he joined an existing law firm that, over time, became known as Baker Botts, today one of the Nation's leading legal firms, still led by his descendants. (2003)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Fanthorp Inn State Historic Site — 31 mi
  A cedar-log dogtrot cabin of 1834 on the road through Anderson that grew into a seventeen-room inn and post office for travelers of the Republic, kept by one family until 1976.

More markers nearby

• Besser, General John Slater — steps away
• The Huntsville Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1867 — steps away
• Anthony Martin Branch — steps away
• Joshua Houston — steps away