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Percival P. Baxter
Percival Proctor Baxter (November 22, 1876 – June 12, 1969) was an American politician and philanthropist from Maine. The son of canning magnate and Portland, Maine mayor James Phinney Baxter, he served as the 53rd governor of Maine from 1921 to 1925. A noted philanthropist, he donated several pieces of land to the public domain including Baxter Woods (Portland), Mackworth Island State Park (Falmouth), and Baxter State Park (Piscataquis County).
Baxter was born in a wealthy family in Portland where his father James Phinney Baxter served six terms as mayor and had made his fortune in the canning industry. He graduated from Portland High School in 1894, and graduated from Bowdoin College with honors in 1898. While at Bowdoin, Baxter founded the school's literary magazine, The Quill. He later earned a law degree from Harvard University in 1901, though he never opened a legal practice. He went into the family real estate business in Portland. He had seven siblings. However, he was to inherit the bulk of the family fortune.
When Baxter was governor he donated to the people of Maine a large parcel of forest land which became Baxter State Park. He said "Man is born to die. His works are short-lived. Buildings crumble, monuments decay, and wealth vanishes, but Katahdin in all its glory forever shall remain the mountain of the people of Maine."[citation needed]
Baxter was also a fierce opponent of the Ku Klux Klan of Maine, which supported the career of his political nemesis and successor Ralph Owen Brewster.
Baxter's history is intertwined with Baxter State Park, which bears his name, and with Mount Katahdin, Maine's highest point (the highest knob on Katahdin is called Baxter Peak).
In 1903 Baxter went on a fishing trip to the area around Katahdin for the first time. In 1895 the Maine Proprietors Association had urged the state to turn that area of the Maine woods into a state park to attract tourists. In 1911 a bill was introduced to turn the region into a U.S. National Park but none of the plans came to fruition. In 1916 Baxter began his campaign to make the area a state park. In 1920 he led a group of politicians up Pamola Peak, traversing the Knife Edge to the summit (now known as Baxter Peak).
In a 1921 speech, Baxter said:
Maine is famous for its twenty-five hundred miles of seacoast, with its countless islands; for its myriad lakes and ponds; and for its forests and rivers. But Mount Katahdin Park will be the state's crowning glory, a worthy memorial to commemorate the end of the first and the beginning of the second century of Maine's statehood. This park will prove a blessing to those who follow us, and they will see that we built for them more wisely than our forefathers did for us.
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Percival P. Baxter
Percival Proctor Baxter (November 22, 1876 – June 12, 1969) was an American politician and philanthropist from Maine. The son of canning magnate and Portland, Maine mayor James Phinney Baxter, he served as the 53rd governor of Maine from 1921 to 1925. A noted philanthropist, he donated several pieces of land to the public domain including Baxter Woods (Portland), Mackworth Island State Park (Falmouth), and Baxter State Park (Piscataquis County).
Baxter was born in a wealthy family in Portland where his father James Phinney Baxter served six terms as mayor and had made his fortune in the canning industry. He graduated from Portland High School in 1894, and graduated from Bowdoin College with honors in 1898. While at Bowdoin, Baxter founded the school's literary magazine, The Quill. He later earned a law degree from Harvard University in 1901, though he never opened a legal practice. He went into the family real estate business in Portland. He had seven siblings. However, he was to inherit the bulk of the family fortune.
When Baxter was governor he donated to the people of Maine a large parcel of forest land which became Baxter State Park. He said "Man is born to die. His works are short-lived. Buildings crumble, monuments decay, and wealth vanishes, but Katahdin in all its glory forever shall remain the mountain of the people of Maine."[citation needed]
Baxter was also a fierce opponent of the Ku Klux Klan of Maine, which supported the career of his political nemesis and successor Ralph Owen Brewster.
Baxter's history is intertwined with Baxter State Park, which bears his name, and with Mount Katahdin, Maine's highest point (the highest knob on Katahdin is called Baxter Peak).
In 1903 Baxter went on a fishing trip to the area around Katahdin for the first time. In 1895 the Maine Proprietors Association had urged the state to turn that area of the Maine woods into a state park to attract tourists. In 1911 a bill was introduced to turn the region into a U.S. National Park but none of the plans came to fruition. In 1916 Baxter began his campaign to make the area a state park. In 1920 he led a group of politicians up Pamola Peak, traversing the Knife Edge to the summit (now known as Baxter Peak).
In a 1921 speech, Baxter said:
Maine is famous for its twenty-five hundred miles of seacoast, with its countless islands; for its myriad lakes and ponds; and for its forests and rivers. But Mount Katahdin Park will be the state's crowning glory, a worthy memorial to commemorate the end of the first and the beginning of the second century of Maine's statehood. This park will prove a blessing to those who follow us, and they will see that we built for them more wisely than our forefathers did for us.