William Baxter ( – ) was an English-born American clergyman and author and second president of Arkansas College. William Baxter was born on in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, England. He came to the United States with his parents in 1828, was graduated at Bethany College in 1845, entered the Christian (Disciple) church and preached in various places in

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

, until he became president of Arkansas College, in Fayetteville. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

the college was destroyed. In 1863 he removed to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

and devoted himself to preaching and literary work. He published a volume of poems in 1852, contributed largely to periodical literature, and has also aided in the preparation of several books, one of the most important being a large volume, ''The Loyal West in the Times of the Rebellion''. Of his '' Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove, or Scenes and Incidents of the War in Arkansas'', several editions were issued. His "War Lyrics," appearing originally in '' Harper's Weekly'', became widely known and were recited at mass meetings by Murdoch and other popular

elocution Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compelli ...

ists. His hymn "Let Me Go" appeared in many hymn-books and collections of sacred music. William Baxter died on 11 February 1880 in New Castle, Pennsylvania.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, William Created via preloaddraft Bethany College (West Virginia) alumni 1820 births 1880 deaths