Carey, Charles Henry. "History of Oregon." Vol. 3. Chicago-Portland: Pioneer Historical Pub. Co., 1922. pp. 185-6. LEANDER H. BAKER Leander H. Baker is closely associated with the educational progress of Portland as the Principal of the Schaffer school. Moreover, he is a representative of one of the old and honored pioneer families of the state and is familiar in every way with the early history of Oregon, his reminiscences of the initial work of development and progress in the northwest being most interesting. He was born in Hopkins county, Kentucky, August 18, 1849, and is a son of C. B. and Eliza (Berry) Baker, both of whom were natives of Hopkins county, Kentucky. The grandfather in the paternal line was James Baker, who followed Daniel Boone into "the dark and bloody ground" at a very early period in the settlement of Kentucky. He ran away from home at the age of fourteen years in order to participate in the Revolutionary war and suffered the untold hardships experienced by the American troops at Valley Forge. He was born in North Carolina and the experiences of his life were indeed varied and interesting, covering his military activities and his connection with the pioneer development of Hopkins county, Kentucky. He wedded Mary Davis, a cousin of Jefferson Davis and a. native of the Blue Grass state. C. B. Baker, with his wife and family, came to Oregon in 1853. He and his lifelong friend, James Biles, organized what was known as the Kentucky train of one hundred and eighty-three people which had the distinction of cutting the first road from the summit of the Cascades to Puget Sound. In the train were Asher Sargent and his family. His son, Nelson Sargent, had preceded the parents to the Puget Sound country. This son met the train near the present site of Pendleton and advised the leaders to turn north from the Oregon trail and go into the Puget Sound district. They found the road open to the summit of the Cascades and after reaching that point there was no alternative but to cut their way through to the Puget Sound; and in so doing they were able to average only about three miles per day. Feed for the stock was scarce and indeed the animals were starving. One morning Mr. Baker, who owned a fine thoroughbred mare, said to his wife: "Kit is down and can't get up; I can't bear to kill her and I hate to leave her to die." When the train was ready to move Mrs. Baker said: "Go on, I am not ready to go." She stayed with the mare, carried water from a nearby canyon, gathered bits of moss, twigs and scant grass, watered and fed the mare and by noon coaxed the animal to her feet and soon overtook the train. The next morning the situation was the same as the previous morning. When the train was ready to start, Mrs. Baker said: "I am not going to give it up yet." About noon she again overtook the train, leading the mare, and from that time on the animal was able to travel with the train. Twelve years after one of her sons competed successfully in the races at the Oregon State Fair. As the party traveled on they met great hardships and difficulties. Many of the hills on the descent were so steep that wagons had to lowered by ropes. On reaching one of the last and the steepest it was found that the ropes were so much worn that there was not length enough to reach the bottom of the hill. The night before an ox was so seriously crippled that he had to be shot. His hide was taken off, cut into strips and platted into a rope, but it was not long enough. James Biles, one of the leaders of the train and probably the wealthiest, said to one of his teamsters: "Bring the poorest ox in my team." The ox was brought, Mr. Biles ordered him shot and the hide was stripped off and platted into rope, but this with all the rope that could be found was not yet enough. Mr. Biles said: "Bring another ox." This, too, he ordered shot and the hide also platted into rope, and this addition to the line proved sufficient, so that the wagons were safely lowered and from that point on the party proceeded to their destination. It was in the fall of 1852 that C. B. Baker and his brother Elijah, made their way from Kentucky to Missouri with their families in order to buy stock for the train with which to make the trip to Oregon the next spring and they were joined by the other travelers from Kentucky at Independence, Missouri, on the 16th of April, 1853, and went into Camp October 16th on American Lake, the long journey having been completed. Mr. Baker took up a donation claim of three hundred and twenty acres of prairie land and remained thereon until his death in 1866. His wife had passed away in Kentucky before he started for Oregon. Mr. Baker was an active factor in the early development of the northwest. Both he and his friend, James Biles, were members of the first three territorial legislatures and thus he aided in shaping the early political history of the state as well as its material development. Leander H. Baker obtained his early education in the district schools of the Puget Sound country to the age of sixteen years, when he walked from Olympia to Monticello, there to take a boat to Salem in order to attend the Willamette University, while subsequently he became a student in McMinnville College. He later won his degree from Lafayette Seminary when but nineteen years of age. He had taught a term in the country school and it was his ambition to become a lawyer, but events shaped his career otherwise. He was chosen superintendent of schools of Yamhlll county and so excellent a record did he make in that position that he was retained in the office for ten years. He was also made a member of the state board of school examiners and so served for thirteen years. He has continued in the profession of teaching throughout the intervening period and for sixteen years has been connected with the Portland schools and for five years of this time was an officer of the juvenile court. He is now principal of the Schaffer school and is recognized as one of the prominent representatives of public education in Oregon. In 1874 Mr. Baker was united in marriage to Miss Sarah W. McTeer, a daughter of Robert and Sarah (Odell) McTeer, who were natives of Tennessee and Indiana respectively, and became Oregon pioneers of 1851. The Odell family is mentioned at length on another page of this work. To Mr. and Mrs. Baker were born six children, five of whom are living: Mabel P., who is the wife of Elwood Layfield, a resident of Mount Vernon, Ohio; Carl C., an attorney at Salinas, California; James C., who died in 1902; Hallie L., the wife of S. B. Allen of Portland; Una G., the wife of Walter Inch of Portland; and Robert V., a student at Rush Medical College Of Chicago, who has been elected president of the Nu Sigma Nu. Mr. Baker has been identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows since 1875. He also belongs to the Pioneer Association of Oregon and for the past fifteen years has been its assistant secretary. He is a lifelong republican and for many years has been a member of the Evangelical church. He is a representative of one of the old and honored pioneer families and although quite young when the family came to the west he can remember distinctly in 1855-6 of the midnight messenger who called to his father to get his family Into Fort Henness as quickly as possible, relating to him the plan of attack and telling him also of the Indian tribes in the league. Mr. Baker has in his possession a complete list of the inmates of Fort Henness, with an accurate pencil drawing of the fort, and also the roster of the volunteers of that fort, including the names of the captain, lieutenants and corporals. The experiences of the pioneer country are familiar to him and he has been a factor in bringing about present-day progress and improvement. ******************* Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in November 2006 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.