William Robinson Baker (1820–1890) was a railroad executive,
Texas State Senator
The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximate ...
and
Mayor of Houston
The following is a list of people who have served as mayor of the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas.
Until 2015, the term of the mayor was two years. Beginning with the tenure of Bob Lanier, the city charter imposed term limits on offi ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
.
Early life
Baker was born on May 21, 1820, in
Baldwinsville, New York
Baldwinsville is a Village (New York), village in Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 7,898 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Syracuse, New York, ...
to Asa Baker and the former Hannah Robinson.
He lived in New York until age 17 at which time he moved to
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
in the
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas ( es, República de Tejas) was a sovereign state in North America that existed from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846, that bordered Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande in 1840 (another breakaway republic from Mex ...
. There he was a bookkeeper for the Houston Town Company for about two years.
[ In 1841, Baker successfully ran for County Clerk of Harris County, a position he held for 16 years. In December 1845, Baker married Hester E. Runnels. She was a niece of former Mississippi Governor ]Hiram Runnels
Hiram George Runnels (December 15, 1796 — December 17, 1857) was a U.S. politician from the states of Mississippi and Texas.
He was a Democrat who served as the ninth governor of Mississippi from November 20, 1833, to December 3, 1835.
...
.[
]
Career
In 1852, Baker became the Secretary of the Texas Central Railroad, and in 1856, Secretary of the Houston and Texas Central Railroad
The Houston and Texas Central Railway (H&TC), was an 872-mile (1403-km) railway system chartered in Texas in 1848, with construction beginning in 1856. The line eventually stretched from Houston northward to Dallas and Denison, Texas. with branch ...
. He eventually became Director and the Vice President of the line. From 1868 to 1871 was President of the railroad, and from 1873 to 1875, served as Vice-President and Manager. He sold his interests and retired from the railroad business in 1877.[
According to the 1860 United States Census, Baker owned real estate valued at $300,000 and personal property valued at $75,000.][
In 1874, Baker was elected to the ]Texas Senate
The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per cons ...
from the 16th District and served one term.[
Baker was the first Houston mayor to hold office for three terms,][ He failed in a bid for a fourth term in 1886 when he lost the election by just four votes.
]
Death
Baker died April 30, 1890.[ He is buried at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston.]
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, William R.
1820 births
1890 deaths
Democratic Party Texas state senators
Mayors of Houston
Businesspeople from Houston
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American businesspeople