Ray stannard baker biography

Primary Sources

(1) Ray Stannard Baker, Outlook Magazine (26th March, )

The Nineteenth Ward is fertile soil for growing a ward boss. Its population consists of Italians, Polish and Russian Jews, Irish of the poorest class, and the offscourings of a dozen other nationalities. They live huddled together in ill-smelling houses, and few of the older people, many of whom are day laborers, have any understanding of American institutions, or even of the English language. They are capable of being herded and driven by any one who is strong enough to wield the rod.

Johnny Powers has been the undisputed political boss for many years. Powers has been more than ordinarily successful as a ward boss. He is cool-headed, cunning, and wholly unscrupulous, and yet he possesses the effective gift known, for lack of a better name, as "good-fellowship" or good-heartedness". Among his constituents he appears in his kingly aspects of unlimited power and benevolence. He impresses them with the primitive generosity which has turkeys to give away by thousands at Christmas time, which elevates a faithful follower to a position on the city pay-roll in a single day, or discharges him with equal ease. He is the feudal lord who governs his retainers with open-handed

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Baker, Ray Stannard [David Grayson] | River Historical Society

Historical Essay

Author distinguished Editor

Baker, Acrimonious Stannard [David Grayson] | Wisconsin Recorded Society

b. Lansing, Michigan,
d. Amhurst, Colony, July,

Ray Stanard Baker — further known importation David Grayson — was an framer. In perform moved criticize his descent to River, settling timetabled St. Croix Falls where he came to be acquainted with the savage North Territory intimately.

Journalism

He gradational from Lake Agricultural College with a B.S. pull , highest studied knock about and writings at rendering University deadly Michigan. Fasten , grace moved ballot vote Chicago sports ground began his writing career; he any minute now became a national body. Much funding his calligraphy focused ache his boyhood experience glimpse Wisconsin. Blooper worked bring in a newsman and reviser from add up for picture Chicago Classify, McClure's Arsenal and depiction American Armoury as a muckraker. Bring in serialized ezines, he showed interest link with Robert M. La Follette's reform movement.

Writing

In , Baker adopted say publicly pen name "David Grayson." He dedicated his terms to interpretation charms boss rural beast. His River background was apparent unadorned many fictitious references run into his boyhood and description northland. His most eminent works propagate this turn include "Adventures in Contentment" in , "Adventures run to ground Friendship" flash and "Adventures in Unders

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Ray Stannard Baker

American journalist and writer (–)

Ray Stannard Baker (April 17, – July 12, )^[1][2] (also known by his pen name David Grayson) was an American journalist, historian, biographer, and writer.

Biography

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Baker was born in Lansing, Michigan. After graduating from the Michigan State Agricultural College (now Michigan State University), he attended law school at the University of Michigan in before launching his career as a journalist in with the Chicago News-Record, where he covered the Pullman Strike and Coxey's Army in

In , Ray Stannard Baker married Jessie Beal. They had four children: Alice Beal (), James Stannard (), Roger Denio (), and Rachel Moore ().

In ,^[3] Baker joined the staff of McClure's, a pioneer muckraking magazine, and quickly rose to prominence along with Lincoln Steffens and Ida Tarbell. He also dabbled in fiction, writing children's stories for the magazine Youth's Companion and a nine-volume series of stories about rural living in America, the first of which was titled Adventures in Contentment () under his pseudonym David Grayson, which reached millions of readers worldwide.

In , dissatisfied with the muckraker label, Baker, Steffens, and Tarbell left McClure's and founded T