James Phinney Baxter
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James Phinney Baxter (March 23, 1831 – May 8, 1921) was an American politician, businessperson, historian, civic leader, and benefactor of
Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...
. He was elected as mayor of Portland for six single-year terms between 1893 and 1905. His personal library, containing over 100 leather-bound books of maps, portraits, engravings and personal letters, is available for reference at the
Portland Public Library Portland Public Library is the main library of the public library system in Portland, Maine, USA. It is located at 5  Monument Square on Congress Street in the Old Port of Portland, Maine. The library has three neighborhood branches, Burban ...
.


Biography

James Phinney Baxter was the son of Dr. Elihu Baxter and Sarah Cone Baxter. He was born in
Gorham, Maine Gorham is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 18,336 at the 2020 United States Census. In addition to its urban village center known as Gorham Village or simply "the Village," the town encompasses a number of s ...
(in what is now called the Baxter House), on March 23, 1831, but lived in Portland from 1840. He attended Master Jackson's School until 1844, and then Lynn Academy until 1848. He began work in the Boston law offices of
Rufus Choate Rufus Choate (October 1, 1799July 13, 1859) was an American lawyer, orator, and Senator who represented Massachusetts as a member of the Whig Party. He is regarded as one of the greatest American lawyers of the 19th century, arguing over a th ...
, but ill health forced a return to Portland, where he worked in a dry goods importing business with William G Davis, pioneering a canning and packing business (Portland Packing Company) that became important to the state's economy.''The New England historical and genealogical register'', Volume 75 pg. 163 (July 1921) No. 299, New England Historic Genealogical Society
/ref> He used the wealth engendered by his successful business for many philanthropic purposes. He was particularly passionate about supporting educational endeavors, and donated a public library (the Baxter Memorial Library) to his birthplace, Gorham, and a library to his adopted city, Portland. He was mayor of Portland for six years, and the moving spirit behind Baxter Boulevard, a tree-lined road that circles the edge of Back Cove, which is often used for exercise and recreation. He was also recognized as an authority on New England history, and among his other interests, he was president of the
Maine Historical Society The Maine Historical Society is the official state historical society of Maine. It is located at 489 Congress Street in downtown Portland. The Society currently operates the Wadsworth-Longfellow House, a National Historic Landmark, Longfellow Ga ...
for thirty years and an overseer of
Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...
, and connected with many other organizations that furthered the interests of New England history. One of his greatest literary and historical achievements was the editing of twenty of the twenty four volumes of The Documentary History of Maine. Baxter also devoted several years to unearthing the details of Capt.
Christopher Levett Capt. Christopher Levett (15 April 1586 – 1630) was an English writer, explorer and naval captain, born at York, England. He explored the coast of New England and secured a grant from the King to settle present-day Portland, Maine, the first ...
's settlement at Portland in 1623–1624. An English sea captain and explorer, Levett's history and the details of the colony he attempted to found had been largely forgotten when Baxter's scholarship illuminated them. Baxter later published a book about Levett, which incorporated the text of Levett's own earlier work, published in 1628 in London. In 1887 Baxter was elected a member of the
American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...
in 1887. He was elected a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
in 1915.''Book of Members, 1780-2010'' Chapter B, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
/ref> Baxter was a member of the Maine
Society of Colonial Wars The Society of Colonial Wars is a hereditary society composed of men who trace their descents from forebears who, in military, naval, or civil positions of high trust and responsibility, by acts or counsel, assisted in the establishment, defense, ...
. Baxter was a life-long opponent of
vivisection Vivisection () is surgery conducted for experimental purposes on a living organism, typically animals with a central nervous system, to view living internal structure. The word is, more broadly, used as a pejorative catch-all term for experiment ...
and his
Will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...
prohibited any payment from his estate to persons who practiced vivisection.


Personal

Baxter died in 1921 at the age of 90, and a Congregationalist pastor officiated at his funeral, although Baxter was also affiliated with the Swedenborg Church. He is buried at Evergreen Cemetery and a large monument to him and his family is located at his gravesite. His son, Governor of Maine (1921-1924)
Percival Proctor Baxter Percival Proctor Baxter (November 22, 1876 – June 12, 1969) was an American politician and philanthropist from Maine. The son of canning magnate and Portland, Maine mayor James Phinney Baxter, he served as the 53rd Governor of the U.S. state ...
, wrote a short biography of his father
''James Phinney Baxter, Historian''
in 1921. concluding with "My father had faith in mankind, faith in the future of America, faith in God and faith in the world to come."


Selected publications

He published: ''
New International Encyclopedia ''The New International Encyclopedia'' was an American encyclopedia first published in 1902 by Dodd, Mead and Company. It descended from the ''International Cyclopaedia'' (1884) and was updated in 1906, 1914 and 1926. History ''The New Intern ...
'' * ''The Trelawney Papers'' (1884) * ''George Cleeve and His Times'' (1885)
''The British Invasion from the North'' (1887)
* ''Sir Ferdinando Georges and his Province of Maine'' (1890) * ''Christopher Levett, of York: The Pioneer Colonist in Casco Bay'' (1893) * ''The Observatory'' (1893) * ''The Pioneers of New France in New England'' (1894) * ''The Voyages of Jacque Cartier'' (1906) * ''The Greatest of Literary Problems: The Authorship of the Shakespeare Works'' (1917)


Descendants

Descendants of James Phinney Baxter include: *
Percival Proctor Baxter Percival Proctor Baxter (November 22, 1876 – June 12, 1969) was an American politician and philanthropist from Maine. The son of canning magnate and Portland, Maine mayor James Phinney Baxter, he served as the 53rd Governor of the U.S. state ...
, Governor of Maine *
James Phinney Baxter III James Phinney Baxter III (February 15, 1893 in Portland, Maine – June 17, 1975 in Williamstown, Massachusetts) was an American historian, educator, and academic, who won the 1947 Pulitzer Prize for History for his book ''Scientists Against Time ...
, President of Williams College


References


External links

*
Obituary

Christopher Levett, of York: The Pioneer Colonist in Casco Bay, James Phinney Baxter, The Gorges Society, Portland, Me., 1893
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, James Phinney 1831 births 1921 deaths 19th-century American historians American philanthropists Anti-vivisectionists Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Mayors of Portland, Maine Politicians from Gorham, Maine Historians of Maine American naval historians 20th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American male writers Members of the American Antiquarian Society General Society of Colonial Wars 20th-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers Businesspeople from Portland, Maine Historians from Maine Baxter family Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Portland, Maine)