Three Forks of the Kentucky River Historical Association

Biography

James Wood Baker

Compiled by Sherry L Baker

Early Clay Countian, First Surveyor of Owsley County

JAMES W. BAKER was born on Cow Creek of Clay County, October 4th, 1829 to a single teenage Levina (Vinnie) Wood who I think was Rebecca Wilson Wood's oldest child. He was named James Wood, as an adult changed his name to James W. Baker. Vinnie told him his father was a Perry county Baker named Jack. She never did marry and he was her only child.

His children told, he was born where Steve Gabbard lived and had a store in the 1820's and early 30's, if that is true he was born at Rebecca Wilson Wood home in his son's diary Andrew J Baker states that he was born in the old Henry Gabbard home. About 1837 or 38 she moved over the hill to Indian Creek, near the school. He became a school teacher, so he had a 8th grade education. 1842 she sold the 50 acres on Cow Creek her father Phillip Wilson gave her to David York.

James went to Clay county to teach school near the Owsley county line, Feb 25, 1850. At age 20 he married Sarah Davidson (16) in Clay county, as James Baker. She was the daughter of John Davidson and Melvina Griffith, their youngest child. On the Clay county 1850 census they lived near her parents. The 1851 tax list shows them on Crane Fork of Cow Creek owning 150 acres, one horse, 2 cows. On the 1852 tax list he has 300 acres on Crane Fork, one horse, 2 cows, one calf.

In July of that year they had their first child, Levina (Vinnie) named after his mother, Vinnie, July 1852

Their 2nd child, my great great grandpa, Andrew Jackson Baker was born in Grassy Branch of Indian Creek Jan 1854. James only owned 50 acres on Grassy Branch but later bought most of it, gave all 14 of his children a farm. He bought and traded land. He was a surveyor. Legend has it that he would be surveying land in Breathitt or Jackson counties, buy land there, later sell it for a profit.

He owned a water Grist Mill on Indian Creek. Thanks to 2 fires of the Owsley County courthouse, records indicating this are now gone, however I have seen many marriage bonds naming him as the justice of the peace.

He was a Magistrate, a leader of upper Indian Creek and Grassy Branch. At the age of 19 his oldest son Andy went to Crockettsville in Breathitt county to teach school. At the end of the school year he married 16 year old Elizabeth Betty Amis, daughter of John H. Amis and Sarah "Sallie" Eversole daughter of Billy Eversole and Elizabeth Bowling. Andy taught one more year of school, moved to Grassy Branch of Indian Creek in Owsley county on land his father James gave Him.

In 1879 when the twins Martha and Mary were less than 3 years old, James divorced Sarah Davidson and told the family he was tired of her and married his son Andy's mother-in-law, Sarah Eversole Amis. He moved her to his Breathitt county farm. He had 2 children by her. James moved his 2nd wife from Breathitt county to Grassy Branch, built her a new house 1880.

When their 2 sons, Steve and Walter were teenagers he left Sarah but never did divorce her. He built himself a 2 room log cabin in Egypt Flat. It wasn't long until he had a young woman with a small baby daughter named Cally Huff, living with him, she wasn't much older than his oldest grandchild. Her name was Sarah Sal Ann Cornett. He told his son Andy, "she's just my housekeeper" but it wasn't long until his housekeeper was pregnant. James had 2 children by her. Carter and Sythie.

In 1903 Sarah Eversole Amis Baker died and was burried at Cow Creek in the York Eversole cemetery beside her father. James was now a 74 yr old single man. His first wife Sarah Davidson died the next year 1905. James W. Baker's 3rd wife Sarah Sis Combs, widow of Dan Hill, died about 1913 and is in the Combs cemetery mouth of Upper Wolf Creek, buried beside her first husband Dan Hill.

James was in poor health almost blind, Andy had to bring Jim to this house. They put a feather bed in a box sled and some pillows and took him to Andy's house. He lived about 2&fra12; years after that died April 1916.

New Note* DNA test have proved our ancestry goes back to Rev. Andrew Baker and then Andrew Baker Esq. his father ca 1690. Hubert W Baker great grandson of James W. Baker has a 111 marker test in the yellow group of Baker's in the YDNA testing through FTDNA. James Baker's father could have been James Walter Baker of Perry County.

The W in James Baker's name may be Walter, this information comes from older members of my family.

Most of the above narratives have been compiled from information derived from my cousin Lewis G. Baker, son of Preacher O.B. Baker and from research I have personally conducted.

The 1850 Clay County Census:

The 1860 Owsley County Census:

This from the writing of Taylor Price Gabbard, brother of Preacher Ike, their family lived next door to James Baker:

James W. first married Sally Davidson, second, Sally Eversole Amis, and third, Sally Cornett as a common law wife; Isabel (Ibby), married Eli Bowling, their family being Buchanan (Buck), Alfred, Isaac, Jane, Eli Bowling died, and Ibby had the following children who are said to be their common law heirs: Lincoln, Belie and Findley.

James W. and Sally Davidson Baker had three children: Andrew Jackson (Andy). married Elizabeth Amis, Viny, married William (Bill) Chandler; a daughter, married a Mr Fox; Robert (Bob), married Jennie Cole; Nancy, married Tandy Frost; Abner, married Nancy Amis, Esther, married Robert Amis, Joseph, married Dorcas; Martha, married James (Jim) Moore; Mary, married Logan Duff.

This family lived up near the head of Indian creek, and owned a large tract of valley and hillside land, on which they carried on subsistence farming, and the raising of a few cattle, sheep, hogs, horses,and poultry.

James W and Sally Davidson built a water mill on the stream that flowed through their homestead, and ground meal for themselves arid for their neighbors, taking out a measure of the shelled corn as a toll, in payment for the grinding of the turn as it was called. This ,was a convenient and satisfactory arrangement for both the customer and, the miller.

James W. Baker was a practical veterinarian, skilled in the art of castrating and spaying such farm animals as might require this sort of treatment. He was one of the few men in the country who sometimes wore an Abraham Lincoln shawl, when riding to the county seat during cold weather. His marriage to Sally Eversole Amis, gave him two boys, Stephen and Walter, and his relations with Sally Cornett gave him two common law children, Carter and Cynthia. Aside from some of the details of his relations with the women folks, he was rated as a good citizen, being better educated and possesed of more wealth than most of his neighbors, and as a surveyor, he had traced the meandering lines bounding tracts of land the deeds of which were of record in the files of the county court clerk of Owsley county, Kentucky.

It is believed that he advocated and practiced the faith of the doctrine of the Universalist church, as expounded by the Rev. John Bolin Lewis, who had some sort of an organization and preached at various school houses in the Cow creek and Indian creek communities for a number of years.