Judge William R. "Bill" Baker of Ashland City passed away on December 12, 2013, at the age of 81. He was preceded in death by his wife, Glover Dale Tarver Baker, and is survived by his daughter, Sister Margaret Andrew Baker, OP, and his son, Father John Sims Baker.

Judge Baker graduated from McCallie School in Chattanooga and received his Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Jurisprudence from Vanderbilt University. He was a foreign service officer of the US Department of State from l956 through 1959, stationed in northern Brazil. Following his tenure abroad, he had a private law practice in Ashland City for 36 years. He was a delegate to the 1965 Tennessee Constitutional Convention, City Attorney, General Sessions Judge, Ashland City Municipal Judge, secretary-treasurer of the Tennessee General Sessions Judges Conference, and Cheatham County Commissioner. Mr. Baker was appointed to the Tennessee Claims Commission, a court for lawsuits against the state of Tennessee, serving as chairman of the commission from l999 – 2004. His jurisdiction covered 42 counties.

He was a communicant of St. Martha's Catholic Church in Ashland City since l988 and a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, a fourth-degree Knight of Columbus, and a supernumerary of Opus Dei. His civic involvement included serving as President of the Chamber of Commerce, Boy Scouts District Chairman, Chairman of the Cheatham County Industrial Development Board, member of the city and county planning commissions, Chairman of the city zoning-appeals board, and Republican Party County Chairman and State Executive Committee.

Family will receive guests at Cheatham County Funeral Home in Ashland City on Sunday, December 15, 2013, from 1 – 7:30 pm, concluding with a rosary. The funeral Mass will be held at St. Martha's Catholic Church in Ashland City on Monday, December 16 at 10 am. Burial will take place at Evergreen Cemetery in Murfreesboro, Tennessee on Monday, December 16 at 3 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Aquinas College, 4210 Harding Road, Nashville, TN 37205; University Catholic, 2004 Terrace Place, Nashville, TN 37203; or St. Martha's Catholic Church, 3331 Bell St, Ashland City, TN 37015. Cheathamcountyfh.com 615-792-2552