Virginia. Governor (1781-1784 : Harrison) (original) (raw)

Benjamin Harrison, V (April 5, 1726 – April 24, 1791) was an American planter and revolutionary leader from Charles City County, Virginia. Educated at the College of William and Mary, Harrison went on to become a representative for Surry County, Virginia (1756 - 1758) and Charles City County (1766 - 1776) to the House of Burgesses. He was a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1777, signed the Declaration of Independence, and was Governor of Virginia from 1781 to 1784.

From the guide to the Benjamin Harrison Land Grant, 1784 September 16, (John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)

Harry Innes, the first federal judge of Kentucky, was born in Caroline County, Virginia, in 1752. He read law under George Wythe and was admitted to the bar in 1773. After practising law in Bedford County, Innes began hispublic caeer in 1776 by administrating lead and powder mines in western Virginia, for the Virginia Committee of Public Safety. In 1779, Governor Thomas Jefferson appointed Innes to adjust and settle land claims in the districts of Montgomery and Washington. The following year, he became escheator and later tax commissioner. In 1782, Innes was appointed assistant judge of the newly established Supreme Court for the district of Kentucky. When Indians killed the court's attorney in 1784, Innes resigned his judgeship to fill the vacancy.

From the description of Decree : legal document, 1782. (Kentucky Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 37458514

Benjamin Harrison, V (April 5, 1726 – April 24, 1791) was an American planter and revolutionary leader from Charles City County, Virginia. He was educated at the College of William and Mary and was, perhaps, the first figure in the Harrison family to gain national attention. Harrison was a representative for Surry County, Virginia (1756 - 1758) and Charles City County (1766 - 1776) to the House of Burgesses. He was a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1777, signed the Declaration of Independence, and was Governor of Virginia from 1781 to 1784. He again ran for the state legislature but was defeated by John Tyler, Sr., father of future president, John Tyler. He was elected from a neighboring district, however, and served until his death.

From the guide to the Gov. Benjamin Harrison, V, Commission, 21 January 1783, (John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)

Benjamin Harrison was born on 5 April 1726 at Berkeley Plantation in Charles City County, Virginia. Harrison was the son of Benjamin Harrison and Anne Carter Harrison. He attended the College of William and Mary in 1745, but did not complete his studies. He entered the House of Burgesses in 1748 and served until 1775. He represented Charles City County in the First through Third Virginia Revolutionary Conventions. A delegate to the First & Second Continental Congress, Harrison was chairman of the Committee of the Whole House and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Harrison resigned his seat on the Continental Congress in 1778. He was also elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1776 serving as speaker of that body from 1778 until his election as governor in 1781. Harrison served three one-year terms as governor from 1781 to 1784 and returned to the House of Delegates after his term ended. He was a member of the House of Delegates until his death 24 April 1791. Harrison married Elizabeth Bassett and had 7 children, including William Henry Harrison (1773-1841) who was the ninth president of the United States.

From the guide to the Executive Papers of Governor Benjamin Harrison, 1781-1784, (The Library of Virginia)

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