| Notes |
- from "Vital records of Phillipston, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849", 1906
Charles Baker, son of James and Lydia, was born April 4, 1828.
- from "Massachusetts, Death Records, 1841-1915" (ancestry.com)
Charles Baker, age 68y 5m 14d, a lumber dealer, born Phillipston MA to James Baker b. Phillipston & Lydia Goulding b. Worcester, deied 18 Sep 1896 in Worcester, Worcester, MA of heart disease & heart failure. [calculated birth date is 4 Apr 1828]
- from "The Worcester Daily Spy", 19 Sep 1896 (genealogybank.com)
Charles Baker, president and treasurer of the Charles Baker Company, lumber dealers and manufacturers of doors, sashes and builders' finish, died Friday morning about 7 o'clock, age 68 years, at his residence, corner of Salisbury Street and Park Avenue, of heart failure, after several weeks illness. His health began to fail six or seven weeks ago, but his condition was not deemed to be critical until about three weeks ago, when he made his last visit to his place of business on Foster Street. Mr. Baker was one of the best known and most enterprising businessman of Worcester, shown in the face of many obstacles and repeated disasters by fire, which would have discouraged most men. He was born in Phillipston, April 4, 1828, his father, James Baker, being a farmer in moderate circumstances. His ancestors on his mother's side were of Worcester parentage for several generations, his mother being a daughter of William Golding, who built the old house on Mechanic street which stood on the site purchased by the city on which to build the new fire department headquarters. His grandmother Lucretia (Bigelow) Golding, was daughter of David Bigelow, brother of Col. Timothy Bigelow of revolutionary fame. Starting as a poor farmer boy in his native town, working during the summer and attending district school in the winter, Mr. Baker in his youth had an ambition to obtain further education, and coming to Worcester he became a student at Worcester Academy, working his way to pay his expenses, at various kinds of labor outside of school hours. In this way he fitted himself for Amherst College. Owing to failing eyesight, however, he was obligated soon to abandon his college studies. After traveling for a while in the west as a book agent, he returned to Massachusetts in 1855, and decided to locate in Worcester. In company with his brother, William J. Baker, he started a small box factory at the south end, but soon afterwards they remove to a small shop which stood on the site of the company's present lumber yard on Foster street. This business rapidly increased, and there was soon added to box making the manufacturer of doors, sashes, and blinds, and all kinds of builders' finish, with the sale of finish lumber of all kinds, making this one of the largest establishments of the kind in this section of the state. The loss of $100,000 by the disastrous fire of September, 1891, did not at all crippled the energies of this enterprising company, notwithstanding it was soon followed by another great fire in the winter of 1892-3. Neither of these disasters nor others which the Bakers suffers, impaired their successful business efforts. Mr. Baker was a member of Montacute Lodge of Free Masons, and was identified with the Board of Trade and Builders' Exchange. He married, Sept. 1, 1863, Elutheria, daughter of Tilly S. And Susan (Harr) Manley of Hardwick, and she survives him, with a son, Chas. Baker, Jr., and three daughters. Another son, William J., lost his life by drowning in North Pond, last winter.
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1828 - 1896 (68 years)
James Baker, b. 15 Aug 1785, Phillipston, Worcester, MA 
