By: Sibley S.R. No. 878
1-1 SENATE RESOLUTION
1-2 WHEREAS, May 10, 1993, marks the 200th anniversary of the
1-3 birth of Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor, one of the founders of
1-4 Baylor University, and the Texas Senate is proud to pause in its
1-5 deliberations to recognize this notable Kentuckian; and
1-6 WHEREAS, To mark the occasion, Strecker Museum on the campus
1-7 of Baylor University is developing a special exhibit to open the
1-8 last week in May; the display will depict Robert Baylor's life in
1-9 Kentucky and Alabama and will note his contributions to education,
1-10 law, and religion during the later years of the Republic and the
1-11 first quarter century of statehood; and
1-12 WHEREAS, Robert Baylor was born in Lincoln County,
1-13 Kentucky, on May 10, 1793, into a family that traced its ancestry
1-14 to King Edward I of England; his father, Walker, and his uncle,
1-15 George, served as personal aides to George Washington during the
1-16 Revolutionary War; and
1-17 WHEREAS, Robert Baylor was a member of the Kentucky militia
1-18 that rescued General William Henry Harrison in May, 1813, when
1-19 Harrison was surrounded by more than 2,000 British and Indian
1-20 troops; Baylor crossed Lake Erie with Commodore William Perry to
1-21 participate in the Battle of the Thames in which Indian leader
1-22 Tecumseh was fatally wounded; and
1-23 WHEREAS, After serving in the War of 1812, Robert Baylor
2-1 studied law in his uncle's office and was elected to the Kentucky
2-2 Legislature in 1819 at the age of 26; he moved to Alabama the
2-3 following year and was elected to that state's legislature in
2-4 1824 and to the 21st United States Congress in 1828; and
2-5 WHEREAS, His roommate during the two years he lived in the
2-6 District of Columbia was Congressman Davy Crockett; Baylor was a
2-7 close associate of Andrew Jackson, John Calhoun, Daniel Webster,
2-8 and Henry Clay; and
2-9 WHEREAS, A convert to Christianity, Robert Baylor was
2-10 ordained a Baptist minister in 1839, and in December of that year,
2-11 he came to Texas at the age of 48 to claim the land due his nephew,
2-12 John Walker Baylor, who had been wounded in the battle of
2-13 San Jacinto and died while recuperating in Alabama; and
2-14 WHEREAS, Baylor settled in Fayette County where he
2-15 established a missionary school; he assisted in the organization
2-16 of the Texas Baptist Association on October 8, 1840, and the Texas
2-17 Baptist Education Society on October 7, 1841; and
2-18 WHEREAS, The Texas Baptist Education Society flourished to
2-19 become Baylor University in 1845 and the Union Association grew
2-20 into the Texas Baptist State Convention in 1848; and
2-21 WHEREAS, Immediately after Texas was admitted to statehood,
2-22 in January, 1845, Robert Baylor was named judge of the 3rd Judicial
2-23 District, a post he held for 23 years; the esteemed attorney was
2-24 also a member of the Supreme Court of the Republic; for more than
2-25 20 years Baylor traveled on horseback over the country with the
3-1 laws of Texas in one saddlebag and the Holy Bible in the other,
3-2 organizing courts and churches by the score, administering the
3-3 law by day and preaching the gospel by night; and
3-4 WHEREAS, The author of Baylor University's charter and
3-5 the principal backer of the act of Congress which granted it,
3-6 Robert Baylor served as a member of the university's board of
3-7 trustees and volunteered his services as a professor of law from
3-8 1845 until his death; now, therefore, be it
3-9 RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
3-10 73rd Legislature, hereby recognize the 200th anniversary of the
3-11 birth of Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor and commend his life of
3-12 service to his adopted state and his nation; and, be it further
3-13 RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared as
3-14 a memento of this important date and as an expression of the
3-15 gratitude of the Texas Senate for his unfailing dedication to
3-16 the Baptist faith and the State of Texas.
3-17 _____________________________________
3-18 President of the Senate
3-19 I hereby certify that the
3-20 above Resolution was adopted by
3-21 the Senate on May 10, 1993.
3-22 _____________________________________
3-23 Secretary of the Senate
3-24 _____________________________________
3-25 Member, Texas Senate