Remember Baker
Encyclopedia
Remember Baker was a member of the Green Mountain Boys
. He was born in Roxbury, Connecticut
(then part of Woodbury) and died in Quebec
. The son of Remember Baker and Tamar Warner, he was a first cousin of Ethan Allen
and Seth Warner
.
Remember Baker, Jr. was described by a cousin as a tough, redheaded
, freckle
-faced young giant. He enlisted as a private in a company of provincial troops in 1755. In 1757, he was stationed at Fort William Henry
, at the head of Lake George
, and during that year participated in battles which went badly for the provincial troops.
In 1758, he enlisted a second time in the expedition of General Abercrombie
in his attempted invasion of Canada
, then held by the French. He was part of a band of 100 men under command of Major Putnam and accompanied by Lord Howe
that went on a scouting expedition. They were surprised by a party of 500 of the enemy and Lord Howe was killed. Putnam and Baker and their men cut their way through the French ranks, charged them in the rear, and after being reinforced killed 300 of the enemy and captured 143 prisoners. Baker received honorable mention in the report of the commanding general. He remained in the service until the close of the year 1759.
He and Desire Hurlbut were married in Roxbury on April 3, 1760. In 1764, Remember, Desire and their small son Ozi moved to Arlington, now in Vermont, and built a grist mill. This was in response to an offer of 50 acres (202,343 m²) from the town to anyone who would start a mill there. This mill burned down in 1789; a mill built in the 1790s is still there. Remember’s cousins Ethan Allen
and Ira Allen
also settled in Arlington. Remember Baker was the first town clerk of Arlington.
The Bakers and the Allens were involved in the controversy over the title of the settlers of Vermont to their land, and Baker became a captain in one of the companies of the Green Mountain Boys
. Remember is said to have been more hot headed than the Allens and Seth Warner
. Following attacks on those loyal to New York, the Governor of New York offered an award for the capture of Ethan Allen, Remember Baker, and others. On March 21, 1771, men from New York under the leadership of John Munro attacked Baker's mill and took Baker away as a prisoner. In the fight, Baker lost a thumb and his wife injured her arm jumping out of a window. She never fully recovered the use of that arm. Remember was taken across the New York border. The Green Mountain Boys rescued Baker and returned him to his family.
By May, 1773, Ira Allen and Remember Baker, as the Allen and Baker Land Co., owned some 45000 acres (182 km²) of virgin land along the Winooski River
, near Burlington, Vermont
. That year there were no roads north of Castleton
, and Baker and Allen cut a road through the forest for seventy miles so that supplies could be brought in from Lake Champlain
. In the summer, they settled on their land and built a log house across the river from Burlington. Ira Allen was unmarried and lived with the Bakers.
Remember Baker joined Ethan Allen for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga
in 1775. He and Seth Warner met at Crown Point, New York
and captured the garrison there. Following that, he served as a scout for General Phillip Schuyler in the area around St. John's, where the English troops and Native Americans were camped.
Around August 19, 1775, Baker left Ticonderoga for another scouting expedition along the Richelieu River
. On August 22, he was shot and killed by Indians who had taken his boat. The Indians plundered the body, cut off Baker's head, raised it upon a pole and carried it in triumph to Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, which horrified the British officers there. They bought it from the Indians and buried it, and also sent some men to the point to bury the body.
Green Mountain Boys
The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in the 1760s in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants...
. He was born in Roxbury, Connecticut
Roxbury, Connecticut
Roxbury is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 2,136 at the 2000 census.-History:Roxbury, whose Indian name was "Shepaug", a Mahican name signifiying "rocky water", was settled about the year 1713...
(then part of Woodbury) and died in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. The son of Remember Baker and Tamar Warner, he was a first cousin of Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S...
and Seth Warner
Seth Warner
Seth Warner was born in Roxbury, Connecticut. In 1763, he removed with his father to Bennington in what was then known as the New Hampshire Grants. He established there as a huntsman....
.
Remember Baker, Jr. was described by a cousin as a tough, redheaded
Red hair
Red hair occurs on approximately 1–2% of the human population. It occurs more frequently in people of northern or western European ancestry, and less frequently in other populations...
, freckle
Freckle
For other uses of the word, see Freckles .Freckles are clusters of concentrated melanin which are most often visible on people with a fair complexion. A freckle is also called an "ephelis". Freckles do not have an increased number of melanin producing cells...
-faced young giant. He enlisted as a private in a company of provincial troops in 1755. In 1757, he was stationed at Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George in the province of New York. It is best known as the site of notorious atrocities committed by Indians against the surrendered British and provincial troops following a successful French siege in 1757, an event which is the...
, at the head of Lake George
Lake George (New York)
Lake George, nicknamed the Queen of American Lakes, is a long, narrow oligotrophic lake draining northwards into Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River Drainage basin located at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York, U.S.A.. It lies within the upper region of the...
, and during that year participated in battles which went badly for the provincial troops.
In 1758, he enlisted a second time in the expedition of General Abercrombie
James Abercrombie (general)
General James Abercrombie or Abercromby was a British Army general and commander-in-chief of forces in North America during the French and Indian War, best known for the disastrous British losses in the 1758 Battle of Carillon.-Early life:Abercrombie was born in Glassaugh, Banffshire, Scotland to...
in his attempted invasion of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, then held by the French. He was part of a band of 100 men under command of Major Putnam and accompanied by Lord Howe
George Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe
George Augustus Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe was a career officer and a Brigadier General in the British Army. He was described by James Wolfe as "the best officer in the British Army"...
that went on a scouting expedition. They were surprised by a party of 500 of the enemy and Lord Howe was killed. Putnam and Baker and their men cut their way through the French ranks, charged them in the rear, and after being reinforced killed 300 of the enemy and captured 143 prisoners. Baker received honorable mention in the report of the commanding general. He remained in the service until the close of the year 1759.
He and Desire Hurlbut were married in Roxbury on April 3, 1760. In 1764, Remember, Desire and their small son Ozi moved to Arlington, now in Vermont, and built a grist mill. This was in response to an offer of 50 acres (202,343 m²) from the town to anyone who would start a mill there. This mill burned down in 1789; a mill built in the 1790s is still there. Remember’s cousins Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S...
and Ira Allen
Ira Allen
Ira Allen was one of the founders of Vermont, and leaders of the Green Mountain Boys; and was the brother of Ethan Allen.-Biography:...
also settled in Arlington. Remember Baker was the first town clerk of Arlington.
The Bakers and the Allens were involved in the controversy over the title of the settlers of Vermont to their land, and Baker became a captain in one of the companies of the Green Mountain Boys
Green Mountain Boys
The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in the 1760s in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants...
. Remember is said to have been more hot headed than the Allens and Seth Warner
Seth Warner
Seth Warner was born in Roxbury, Connecticut. In 1763, he removed with his father to Bennington in what was then known as the New Hampshire Grants. He established there as a huntsman....
. Following attacks on those loyal to New York, the Governor of New York offered an award for the capture of Ethan Allen, Remember Baker, and others. On March 21, 1771, men from New York under the leadership of John Munro attacked Baker's mill and took Baker away as a prisoner. In the fight, Baker lost a thumb and his wife injured her arm jumping out of a window. She never fully recovered the use of that arm. Remember was taken across the New York border. The Green Mountain Boys rescued Baker and returned him to his family.
By May, 1773, Ira Allen and Remember Baker, as the Allen and Baker Land Co., owned some 45000 acres (182 km²) of virgin land along the Winooski River
Winooski River
The Winooski River is a tributary of Lake Champlain, approximately long, in northern Vermont in the United States. Although not Vermont's longest river, it is one of the state's most significant, forming a major valley way from Lake Champlain through the Green Mountains towards the Connecticut...
, near Burlington, Vermont
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
. That year there were no roads north of Castleton
Castleton, Vermont
Castleton is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. Castleton is about to the west of Rutland, and about east of the New York/Vermont state border. The town had a population of 4,717 at the 2010 census. Castleton State College is located there, with roots dating to 1787...
, and Baker and Allen cut a road through the forest for seventy miles so that supplies could be brought in from Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
. In the summer, they settled on their land and built a log house across the river from Burlington. Ira Allen was unmarried and lived with the Bakers.
Remember Baker joined Ethan Allen for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga, formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century fort built by the Canadians and the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain in upstate New York in the United States...
in 1775. He and Seth Warner met at Crown Point, New York
Crown Point, New York
Crown Point is a town in Essex County, New York, USA. The population was 2,119 at the 2000 census. The name of the town is a direct translation of the original French name, "Point au Chevalure."...
and captured the garrison there. Following that, he served as a scout for General Phillip Schuyler in the area around St. John's, where the English troops and Native Americans were camped.
Around August 19, 1775, Baker left Ticonderoga for another scouting expedition along the Richelieu River
Richelieu River
The Richelieu River is a river in Quebec, Canada. It flows from the north end of Lake Champlain about north, ending at the confluence with the St. Lawrence River at Sorel-Tracy, Quebec downstream and northeast of Montreal...
. On August 22, he was shot and killed by Indians who had taken his boat. The Indians plundered the body, cut off Baker's head, raised it upon a pole and carried it in triumph to Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, which horrified the British officers there. They bought it from the Indians and buried it, and also sent some men to the point to bury the body.