[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 195 (Tuesday, December 11, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1646-E1647]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                POSTMASTER FRAZIER B. BAKER POST OFFICE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 11, 2018

  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7230, a bill I 
sponsored to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service 
located at 226 West Main Street in Lake City, South Carolina, as the 
``Postmaster

[[Page E1647]]

Frazier B. Baker Post Office''. This bill pays a tribute to a true 
American hero.
  Frazier B. Baker was appointed Postmaster of Effingham, South 
Carolina in 1892 by President Benjamin Harrison, and in 1897, he was 
appointed Postmaster of Lake City, South Carolina by President William 
McKinley.
  After Baker was appointed Postmaster of Lake City, local citizens in 
the predominantly white community subjected his family to months of 
hostility. The post office mysteriously burned down, and multiple 
gunshots were fired at him. Residents filed numerous complaints 
regarding his performance as postmaster, but federal postal 
administrators determined the allegations were unsubstantiated.
  After relocating the post office to his family's home following the 
previous arson, a lynch mob set fire to it the morning of February 22, 
1898. The mob aimed their guns at the home, killing Baker and his two-
year-old daughter Julia and injuring his wife and three of his five 
surviving children. The attack sparked media attention, public uproar, 
and fundraising efforts on behalf of the Baker family.
  Although the state of South Carolina failed to prosecute the mob; 
federal prosecutors and postal administrators took on the murder 
investigation. Thirteen men were arrested and charged with twenty-four 
criminal counts including ``a conspiracy to injure and oppress Frazier 
B. Baker in the free exercise'' of his civil rights. The trial began on 
April 10, 1899 in Charleston, South Carolina with an all-white jury 
which acquitted three and deadlocked on the remaining accused. The 
judge declared a mistrial and federal prosecutors did not reopen the 
case.
  Justice was never served for Frazier B. Baker and his family. 
Designating the U.S. Post Office located at 226 West Main Street in 
Lake City, South Carolina in his honor is a fitting tribute to his 
memory.
  I thank my colleagues in the South Carolina delegation for their 
unanimous support of this bill. I urge its passage by the House to 
honor this outstanding South Carolinian and great American.

                          ____________________