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BORN
1929
DIED
2020
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Stephen Baxter Obituary
March 8, 1929 - September 15, 2020
Durham
Stephen B. Baxter, 91, of The Forest at Duke, Durham, formerly of Chapel Hill, died in his sleep on the morning of September 15, 2020. In his final days, he was surrounded by his family and was supported by the awesome staff at The Forest of Duke and Transitions Hospice.
He was the husband of Ann Sweeney Baxter (the love of his life). They were married August 22, 1953, in Dublin, Ireland, and were inseparable for 47+ years.
He was born in Boston, Mass., March 8, 1929, the son of James Phinney Baxter III and Anne Strang Baxter. A graduate of St Paul's School, Harvard University, and Trinity College, Cambridge, Dr. Baxter was a professor of European History at the University of North Carolina for the majority of his career. After spending 2 years teaching at Dartmouth, and one year at the University of Missouri, Dr. Baxter came to Chapel hill in 1958 as an associate professor of history. In 1966, he became a full professor and in 1975 became a Kenan professor of history. He retired in 1991 having written five books, including his acclaimed biography of William III, and multiple articles. Dr. Baxter was awarded the Guggenheim fellowship in 1959-1960, and in 1973-1974.
He leaves five children, Clare Baxter, Persis Andrews (Rik), James Baxter, Padraic Baxter (Susie), and Michael, 9 grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and thousands of history students. He was predeceased, in addition to his wife Ann, by a son, Nicholas Baxter, and his two brothers Arthur and James.
A Mass of Christian Burial was held at the St. John Fisher Chapel on the campus of St. Thomas Moore Catholic Church on Saturday, September 19 at 10:00 am. A graveside service was held immediately following at the Chapel Hill Memorial Cemetery, Chapel Hill, NC.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to either the Peter C. Baxter Memorial Prize fund at the University of North Carolina, 208 W. Franklin St., Chapel Hill, NC 27516 or to the Forest at Duke Employee Fund, 2701 Pickett Road, Durham, NC 27705.
The Baxter family is under the care of Walker's Funeral Home of Chapel Hill. www.walkersfuneralservice.com.
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Memories and Condolences
for Stephen Baxter
Sponsored by Walker's Funeral Home of Chapel Hill.
1 Entry
John Kasson
September 20, 2020
Steve Baxter was one of the first members of UNC’s History faculty that I met when I arrived in Chapel Hill in 1971, and he and Ann were the first to invite Joy and me over to a diner party. Over the years, there followed many other dinner parties at their house on Hawthorne Lane. They were always memorable for the savory delights of Ann’s superb cooking, the elegance of their home, and the richness of conversation.
For many years in Hamilton Hall, my office lay right next to Steve’s corner one, and we chatted nearly every day. Even as a young man, he enjoyed playing an old one, but this pose was constantly belied by the nimbleness of his wit and humor. His own father, of course, had been a man of exceptional prominence and acclaim, but Stephen was perhaps more exceptional as a scholar, and his distinguished achievements are enduring ones. He was also deeply devoted to Anne, and her loss of an eye and then of life were an agony and grief that he bore bravely.
After his retirement, I saw much less of him. Yet I was always very glad to see him, and once he gave his customary self-deprecatory reply to my salutation “How are you?,” with “Old” or “Fat,” I think that he enjoyed the exchange as well.
We first met his children when they were young and had the pleasure of attending Persis’s wedding and of knowing James as an adult. We send all of them and their families our deepest sympathy.
John Kasson
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