Jehu Baker

Jehu Baker

Jehu Baker (born November 4, 1822 in Lexington , Kentucky , †  March 1, 1903 in Belleville , Illinois ) was an American politician . Between 1865 and 1899 he represented the state of Illinois in the US House of Representatives three times .

Career

In 1829 Jehu Baker came to Lebanon , Illinois, with his father . He attended public schools in his new home as well as McKendree College . After studying law and being admitted to the bar in 1846, he began to work in this profession in Belleville. Between 1861 and 1865 he was a Masters in Chancery in St. Clair County there . Politically, he became a member of the Republican Party .

In the congressional election of 1864 Baker was elected to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC , in the twelfth constituency of Illinois , where he succeeded William Ralls Morrison on March 4, 1865 . After being re-elected, he was able to complete two terms in Congress until March 3, 1869 . In April 1865 the civil war ended . Since 1865, the work of Congress has been overshadowed by tension between Republicans and President Andrew Johnson , which culminated in a narrowly unsuccessful impeachment trial. From 1865 to 1867, Baker chaired the Department of Post's Expenditure Control Committee. He then headed the Education Committee until 1869. During this time the 13th and 14th amendments were ratified.

From 1878 to 1881 and again from 1882 to 1885, Jehu Baker was the American envoy to Venezuela . In the elections of 1886 he was re-elected to Congress in the 18th district of his state, where he could complete another term between March 4, 1887 and March 3, 1889. In 1888 he was not re-elected. In the following years Baker practiced as a lawyer again. He also switched to the Democratic Party . In 1896 he was elected to Congress one more time as their candidate in the 21st District of Illinois. Between March 4, 1897 and March 3, 1899, he completed his last legislative period there. During this time the Spanish-American War fell . In 1898 he renounced another candidacy. Then he worked again as a lawyer. Jehu Baker died in Belleville on March 1, 1903.

Web links

• Jehu Baker in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• Jehu Baker in the database of Find a Grave (English)