Ray Stannard Baker (April 17, 1870 – July 12, 1946) (also known by his pen name David Grayson) was an American
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
,
historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...
,
biographer
Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography.
Biographers
Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...
, and author.
Biography
![111-SC-25389 - NARA - 55210325-cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/111-SC-25389_-_NARA_-_55210325-cropped.jpg)
Baker was born in
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, making ...
. After graduating from the
Michigan State Agricultural College
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
(now
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
), he attended law school at the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
in 1891 before launching his career as a journalist in 1892 with the ''Chicago News-Record,'' where he covered the
Pullman Strike
The Pullman Strike was two interrelated strikes in 1894 that shaped national labor policy in the United States during a period of deep economic depression. First came a strike by the American Railway Union (ARU) against the Pullman factory in Chi ...
and
Coxey's Army
Coxey's Army was a protest march by unemployed workers from the United States, led by Ohio businessman Jacob Coxey. They marched on Washington, D.C. in 1894, the second year of a four-year economic depression that was the worst in United Sta ...
in 1894.
In 1896, Ray Stannard Baker married Jessie Beal. They had four children: Alice Beal (1897), James Stannard (1889), Roger Denio (1902), and Rachel Moore (1906).
In 1898, Baker joined the staff of ''
McClure's
''McClure's'' or ''McClure's Magazine'' (1893–1929) was an American illustrated monthly periodical popular at the turn of the 20th century. The magazine is credited with having started the tradition of muckraking journalism (investigative journ ...
'', a pioneer
muckraking
The muckrakers were reform-minded journalists, writers, and photographers in the Progressive Era in the United States (1890s–1920s) who claimed to expose corruption and wrongdoing in established institutions, often through sensationalist publ ...
magazine, and quickly rose to prominence along with
Lincoln Steffens
Lincoln Austin Steffens (April 6, 1866 – August 9, 1936) was an American investigative journalist and one of the leading muckrakers of the Progressive Era in the early 20th century. He launched a series of articles in '' McClure's'', called " ...
and
Ida Tarbell
Ida Minerva Tarbell (November 5, 1857January 6, 1944) was an American writer, Investigative journalism, investigative journalist, List of biographers, biographer and lecturer. She was one of the leading muckrakers of the Progressive Era of th ...
. He also dabbled in fiction, writing children's stories for the magazine ''Youth's Companion'' and a nine-volume series of stories about rural living in America, the first of which was titled ''Adventures in Contentment'' (1910) under his pseudonym David Grayson, which reached millions of readers worldwide.
In 1907, dissatisfied with the muckraker label, Baker, Steffens, and Tarbell left ''McClure's'' and founded ''
The American Magazine
''The American Magazine'' was a periodical publication founded in June 1906, a continuation of failed publications purchased a few years earlier from publishing mogul Miriam Leslie. It succeeded ''Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (1876–1904), ' ...
''. In 1908, after the
1906 Atlanta Race Riot got him involved, Baker published the book ''Following the Color Line: An Account of Negro Citizenship in the American Democracy'', becoming the first prominent journalist to examine America's racial divide; it was extremely successful. Sociologist Rupert Vance says it is:
He followed up that work with numerous articles in the following decade.
In 1910, he moved to the town of
Amherst, Massachusetts
Amherst () is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,263, making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County (althoug ...
.
In 1912, Baker published ''The Friendly Road'', an account of the places he visited and people he met while on a
walking tour
A walking tour is a tour of a historical or cultural site undertaken on foot, frequently in an urban setting. Short tours can last under an hour, while longer ones can take in multiple sites and last a full day or more. A walk can be led by a tou ...
of the United States. In
that year's presidential election Baker supported the presidential candidacy of
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
, which led to a close relationship between the two men, and in 1918 Wilson sent Baker to Europe to study the
war situation. He was in connection with the future president of Czechoslovak Republic
Thomas Garrigue Masaryk
Thomas may refer to:
People
* List of people with given name Thomas
* Thomas (name)
* Thomas (surname)
* Saint Thomas (disambiguation)
* Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church
* Thomas the Ap ...
in America yet, from May 1918. During peace negotiations, Baker served as Wilson's press secretary at
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
. He eventually published 15 volumes about Wilson and internationalism, including the six-volume ''The Public Papers of Woodrow Wilson'' (1925-1927) with
William Edward Dodd
William Edward Dodd (October 21, 1869 – February 9, 1940) was an American historian, author and diplomat. A liberal Democrat, he served as the United States Ambassador to Germany from 1933 to 1937 during the Nazi era. Initially a holder o ...
, and the 8-volume ''Woodrow Wilson: Life and Letters'' (1927–1939), the last two volumes of which won the
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography
The Pulitzer Prize for Biography is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished biography, autobiography or memoir by an American author o ...
in 1940. He served as an adviser on Darryl F. Zanuck's 1944 film ''
Wilson''.
Baker wrote two autobiographies, ''Native American'' (1941) and ''American Chronicle'' (1945).
Baker died of a heart attack in Amherst, Massachusetts, and is buried there in Wildwood Cemetery. Buildings have been named in honor of both Ray Stannard Baker and David Grayson (his pen name). A dormitory, Grayson Hall, is at the
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...
. The David Grayson Elementary School is in
Waterford, Michigan
Waterford Township is a charter township in the geographic center of Oakland County, Michigan, United States.
In 2020, the population of Waterford Township was 70,565.
Communities
Waterford Township has five unincorporated communities:
* Clin ...
. An academic building, Baker Hall, is at
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
. A trail in Amherst has also been named for Baker.
Amherst Trail Map
/ref>
Baker's brother Hugh Potter Baker
Hugh Potter Baker (January 20, 1878 – May 24, 1950) was a graduate of the Michigan State College of Agriculture; Yale's School of Forestry (M.F., 1904); and the University of Munich (Ph.D., Economics, 1910). He was the second and fourth Dean o ...
was the president of Massachusetts State College, which later became the University of Massachusetts
The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medica ...
.
Works
* ''Shop Talks on the Wonders of Crafts'' (Chicago, 1895)
* ''Our New Prosperity'' (New York: Doubleday & Company, McClure, 1900)
"The Boys Book of Inventions (London: Harper & Brothers, 1900)
* ''Seen in Germany'' (New York: McClure, Phillips, 1901)
* ''Boys' Second Book of Inventions'' (New York: McClure, Phillips, 1903)
"The Reign of Lawlessness: Anarchy and Despotism in Colorado,"
''McClure's Magazine,'' vol. 23, no. 1 (May 1904), pp. 43–57.
* ''Adventures in Contentment'' (1907) (as David Grayson)
* ''The Atlanta Riot'' (1907)
* ''Following the Color Line: An Account of Negro Citizenship in the American Democracy'' (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, New York, 1908
read online
* ''New Ideals in Healing'' (New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1909)
* ''Adventures in Friendship'' (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1910
read online
* ''The Spiritual Unrest'' (New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1910
read online
* ''The Friendly Road'' (Doubleday, 1912) (as David Grayson)
* ''Great Possessions: A New Series of Adventures'' (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1917) (as David Grayson
read online
* ''What Wilson Did at Paris'' (New York, 1919)
* ''Woodrow Wilson and World Settlement'' (3 vols.) (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1922-1923
read vol. 3 online
* ''An American Pioneer in Science: The Life and Service of William James Beal
William James Beal (March 11, 1833 – May 12, 1924) was an American botanist. He was a pioneer in the development of hybrid corn and the founder of the W. J. Beal Botanical Garden.
Biography
Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and ...
'', with Jessie B. Baker (Amherst, Mass: Privately printed, 1925)
* ''The Public Papers of Woodrow Wilson.'' With William Edward Dodd. Six volumes. (1925-1927)
* ''Woodrow Wilson: Life and Letters'' (8 vols.) (New York: Doubleday, Page, and Doubleday, Doran) (1927-1939)
"Youth, 1856-1890" (1927)
"Princeton, 1890-1910" (1927)
ttps://books.google.com/books/about/Woodrow_Wilson_Armistice_March_1_Novembe.html?id=yIEjAQAAIAAJ "Armistice, March 1 - November 11, 1918 (1939)"(1940 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography
The Pulitzer Prize for Biography is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished biography, autobiography or memoir by an American author o ...
).
* ''Woodrow Wilson: Neutrality, 1914-1915'' (New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1935
read online
* ''The Countryman's Year'' (New York: Doubleday, Page, and Doubleday, Doran, 1936) (as David Grayson)
* ''The Capture, Death and Burial of J. Wilkes Booth'' (Poor Richard Press, 1940
* ''Native American: The Book of My Youth'' (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1941)
* ''American Chronicle: The Autobiography of Ray Stannard Baker'' (as David Grayson) (Charles Scribner's Son, 1945
read online
* ''A Journalist's Diplomatic Mission: Ray Stannard Baker's World War I Diary''. John Maxwell Hamilton, ed. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 2012.
References
Further reading
* Hamilton, John M. (2020) ''Manipulating the Masses: Woodrow Wilson and the Birth of American Propaganda''. Louisiana State University Press.
* Bannister, Robert C., ''Ray Stannard Baker: The Mind and Thought of a Progressive.'' (1966)
* Gorton, Stephanie. ''Citizen Reporters: S.S. McClure, Ida Tarbell, and the Magazine that Rewrote America].'' New York: Ecco/HarperCollins, 2020.
External links
Ray Stannard Baker Papers at the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University
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Papers, Special Collections, Jones Library, Amherst, MA.
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*Ray Stannard Baker's collected journalism a
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Ray Stannard
1870 births
1946 deaths
Writers from Lansing, Michigan
Writers from Amherst, Massachusetts
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners
American investigative journalists
Michigan State University alumni
University of Michigan Law School alumni
American male journalists
Journalists from Michigan
Progressive Era in the United States
Historians from Massachusetts
American male biographers
Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters