On February 22,1898, Frazier Baker (the postmaster of Lake City, South Carolina) and his family awoke to discover that a fire had been deliberately set to the back of their home, where the local post office was located. Baker and his daughter Julia were shot to death, and their bodies were left to cremate. Baker’s wife, Lavinia, and daughters Rosa and Cora were each shot through the arm, and his son, Lincoln, was shot in the arm and in the stomach.
In this letter from the US Attorney Abial Lathrop to Attorney General John W. Griggs, the local federal prosecutor describes the early stages of the investigation into the murder of Frazier and Julia Baker. In the letter, Abial describes that while the general sentiment of South Carolina is to bring the the guilty parties to justice, the people in and around Lake City will not be provide substantial assistance in the investigation.
