James Gannon and Amanda Ridge were married in Holt County,
Missouri. They moved to White Cloud, Kansas, where they had their first born, a
son by the name of Samuel Gannon, November 27, 1860. The city of White Cloud, is
located to the upper North eastern edge of Kansas and boarders Missouri. On
April 12, 1861 the American Civil War began, Kansas remained a Union State,
while its neighbors to the South and to the East mainly belong to the
Confederates. Missouri was a state that was proclaimed Neutral, but it was
deeply divided, Missouri was a slave state, however some counties remained loyal
to the Union, while others pledged their allegiance to the Confederacy.
While it is unclear what role James Gannon may have played
in the Civil War, he was clearly of age to enlist or be indoctrinated. There is
on record, one James Gannon whom enlisted in Leav
enworth,
Kansas as a private in the Union army, May 29, 1861 and was in the first
Infantry Volunteer Regiment, this regiment moved into Missouri in June of that
year. There is also another man named James Gannon whom enlisted in Union army
in Missouri in 1862 in the 33rd Regiment Missouri Infantry.
While James and Amanda had their first child in Kansas in
1861, they had their second child in Missouri, in September of 1862, the child's
name was Barbara Elizabeth Gannon.
James Gannon died in 1865, how and where is unknown at this
time. His widowed wife Amanda would re-marry a man by the name of Charles Ben
Cowley, they would live in Robinson, Twp. Kansas.
The town of Robinson, Kansas began in 1854, but prior to
1860, it was part of the vast, unbroken prairie, sparsely settled by the
pioneers of the time. The Territory of Kansas became the 34th State on January
29, 1861, ironically just a few months before the Civil War began.
The town of Robinson began on a hill, South of the present
day location, relocating after the Topeka & Pikes Peak Railroad built a line
from St. Joseph to Marysville, the town had moved three-quarters of a mile, in
order to relocate near the tracks.
Amanda's children, Samuel and Barbara grew up in Robinson
Township. I should note that Barbara preferred using her middle name, so it is
common to see her name listed as Elizabeth B. Gannon.
Elizabeth (Barbara) Gannon married John W. Baker in 1883,
they both lived in Robinson Township. While living in Robinson, they had 5
children. Lewis Delbert Baker was the third child, and second son, he was born
on the 27th of December 1887.
The Baker family moved to Oklahoma Territory in 1893, and
had lived in various towns within Canadian County, always living in a town near
the railroad tracks. It appears in the 1900 United States Census that they were
living in Canadian County in the township of Cement, this township today appears
to boarder with Caddo County. By November of 1907 Oklahoma became the 46th
State. While in Canadian County, John Baker and his wife had 4 more children;
they now had a total of nine children. John Baker grew up as a Farmer, and that
was his occupation, he owned his own farm, his boys were raised as farmers.
At some point the Baker family moved to Okarche, a
newspaper obituary regarding Elizabeth's mother, Amanda Ridge, puts the Baker
family in Okarche, Oklahoma in 1915. Amanda Ridge had been living with her son,
Frank Cowley in Lewiston, Nebraska when she died. Frank Cowley was the only
child born to Amanda in her second marriage.
It is known that at least two of the children of John and
Elizabeth were soldiers in the U.S. Army during the first World War. Lewis Baker
and his younger brother Charles.
Charles Baker was assigned to the 79 Infantry, Company M
and held the rank of Private.
Lewis Bakers 1917 Draft Registration states that his
family's home was in Okarche, Oklahoma. He is described as being 28 years old, a
Tall man with a medium build; Grey eyes and brown hair. In 1917, Lewis was in
the Army, he received his basic training at Camp Travis, Texas. In January of
1918, he was part of a detachment of men, mainly from the 165th Depot brigade
that had their orders to leave for France, departing Texas by train for the East
Coast. On January 23/24, 1918 Mr. Lewis marched down the Cunard docks in Hoboken
to board the Troop Transport "Tuscania." Joining him aboard were several
regiments of men whom were from all parts of America. The ship departed fully
loaded, its destination was France, but the ship went Northward toward Canada.
The Tuscania went into Halifax Harbor, where several men were evacuated due to
illness. Upon leaving the Harbor, the ship was still in the waters, whereas
several ships amassed to form a convoy, led by the British Cruiser Cochrane.
When the ship was near the mouth of the North Channel,
several escorting British Cruisers came to accompany this convoy through the
perilous waters known as the "Danger Zone." The sun had settled over the horizon
at 5:29 o'clock, the light slowly fading away from the sky toward total
darkness. At 5:42 p.m. the Tuscania was hit by a torpedo. Some 230 men lost
there lives that night, the survivors that were rescued, landed in Ireland, and
some on the Island of Islay, in Scotland. Lewis Baker was rescued by a trawler
called the "Elf King" and taken to Larne, where he was taken to a hospital.
After his recovery, Mr. Baker was sent to England, and then
onto France, where he was later promoted to the rank of Wagoneer. He returned to
the States in 1919 and was discharged from the Army service.
Lewis Baker made his home in the city of El Reno, Oklahoma
in 1923, and became a lifelong member of the American Legion and the Veterans of
Foreign Wars (VFW). He earn a living, working construction on Highway's, and
retired as a foreman. On Sunday, Sept. 22, 1974, Lewis died at his home in El
Reno, Oklahoma.
