Background
He was born in Pulaski, New York, on August 22, 1841, the son of Thomas and Sybil (Weed) Baker. His ancestors, who came from Gloucestershire, England, settled in New England and fought in the Revolutionary War.
He was born in Pulaski, New York, on August 22, 1841, the son of Thomas and Sybil (Weed) Baker. His ancestors, who came from Gloucestershire, England, settled in New England and fought in the Revolutionary War.
He was graduated with the degree of M. D. from Columbian (now George Washington) University in 1880.
After some years of practise in Washington, he became, in 1883, professor of anatomy in the Georgetown University School of Medicine, holding this chair continuously for thirty-five years until his death. During this entire period he contributed many papers on anatomy and allied subjects to scientific societies. He also reported frequently on various phases of medical history, a subject in which he took the greatest interest. His anatomical papers dealt especially with the teaching of anatomy. He visualized anatomy as a living subject and used his knowledge of anthropology and embryology to emphasize its dynamic character. He founded the biological and anthropological societies of Washington, D. C. , served as president of the Association of American Anatomists, 1897, secretary of the Washington Academy of Science from 1890 to 1911, and edited the American Anthropologist from 1891 to 1898. He collaborated with Dr. John S. Billings in the Medical Dictionary (1890), and contributed the section on medical and anatomical terms in the Standard Dictionary (1890), as well as the anatomical article in Buck's Reference Handbook of the Medical Sciences. In 1889, he was appointed superintendent of the United States Life Saving Service and from 1890 to 1916 served as superintendent of the National Zoological Park, D. C.
He read a number of papers on medical history before the Johns Hopkins Medical Society and was one of the founders of the Medical History Club of Washington. His "History of Anatomy" in Stedman's Reference Handbook of the Medical Sciences (1913), I, 323-45, is one of the best accounts of the subject ever written. He collected a valuable library on anatomy, which was divided after his death between the library of the Surgeon-General's Office, Washington, and the medical library of McGill University. His lectures to art schools were largely attended. He was a life-long friend of Walt Whitman and John Burroughs, all three having been in the government service together.
His death occurred in Washington, September 30, 1918, and his widow and six children survived him.
He read a number of papers on medical history before the Johns Hopkins Medical Society and was one of the founders of the Medical History Club of Washington.
Baker's fine presence and his lively sense of humor made him a most popular teacher.
On September 13, 1873, he married Mary Cole of Sedgwick, Maine.