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Baker, Liva (Florence Olivia), 1930-2007

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1930-2007

Biographical Note

Liva Baker was a freelance writer and author of numerous books related to legal history. Her books included biographies of Supreme Court justices Felix Frankfurter and Oliver Wendell Holmes, as well as works on the topics of women's education, the U.S. Supreme Court’s Miranda decision, and the desegregation of public schools in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Florence Olivia Baker, known as Liva, was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. She received her B.A. in English from Smith College in 1953 and a M.A. degree in Journalism from Columbia University in 1955. After a brief stint with New York Newsday, Baker moved to Washington, DC, where and joined the staff of National Geographic magazine. She left the magazine in 1965, and her first book, a children’s book about world religions, was published two years later. In 1969, Baker's biography of Supreme Court Felix Frankfurter was published, which was followed by a book about the legacy women's colleges in the United States, I'm Radcliffe! Fly Me!: The Seven Sisters and the Failure of Women's Education (1976).

Baker’s other books on U.S. legal history included Miranda: Crime, Law and Politics (1983), The Justice From Beacon Hill: The Life and Times of Ol iver Wendell Holmes (1991) and The Second Battle of New Orleans: The Hundred-Year Struggle to Integrate the Schools (1996).

Liva Baker was married to Leonard S. Baker, who died in 1984.

Citation:
Author: Christopher Harter
Citation:
Library of Congress name authority record for Liva Baker

Liva Baker. "With All Deliberate Speed" in American Heritage, Vol. 24, no. 2 (February 1973)

Liva Baker Collection collection file, Amistad Research Center.

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

Liva Baker collection

 Collection — Folder: 1
Identifier: 2389
Scope and Contents This collection contains a cassette audiotape and transcription of a talk given by Liva Baker at the Amistad Research Center on October 22, 1996. The topic of Baker's talk was the recent publication of her book The Second Battle of New Orleans: The Hundred-Year Struggle to Integrate the Schools. Particular focus was given to individuals who played a role in the book: Rosa Freeman Keller, A.P. Tureaud, J. Skelly Wright, Daniel Ellis Byrd, John P. Nelson and...
Dates: Created: 1996; Other: Date acquired: 10/26/1996