Elisha Harris (September 8, 1791 – February 1, 1861) of

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

Kent County, Rhode Island Kent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. As of the 2020 census, the population was 170,363, making it the second-most populous county in Rhode Island. The county was formed in 1750 from the southern third of Providence ...

, was

Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island The current lieutenant governor of Rhode Island is Sabina Matos, who was sworn in on April 14, 2021, after Daniel McKee succeeded to the office of governor. The first lieutenant governor was George Brown. In Rhode Island, the lieutenant gover ...

, 1846–47 serving under Governor

Byron Diman Byron Diman (August 5, 1795 – August 1, 1865) was an American politician who served as 19th Governor of Rhode Island. Diman was born in Bristol, Rhode Island, on August 5, 1795. He worked in a counting-house for over two decades. He was then e ...

and the 20th

Governor of Rhode Island The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, o ...

1847–49.

Biography

Harris was born in Cranston,

Providence County, Rhode Island Providence County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 660,741, or 60.2% of the state's population. Providence County contains the city of Providence, the state capi ...

. He attended the local schools and the East Greenwich Seminary. He then embarked on a business career, working initially as a bookkeeper. He eventually became an owner of several manufacturing companies, banks and other enterprises, including serving as President of the Bank of North America in Providence, and operating the Harris Mill in the

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle o ...

. Active in politics as a Whig, Harris served several terms in the

Rhode Island House of Representatives The Rhode Island House of Representatives is the lower house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the upper house being the Rhode Island Senate. It is composed of 75 members, elected t ...

. He served as lieutenant governor from 1846 until 1847. In 1847 he became governor, and he served one term, 1847 to 1849. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1848, and for election as governor in 1850. Harris became a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

when the party was founded in the mid-1850s, and he was a presidential elector in 1860. Harris died in Coventry and was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Coventry. Henry Howard, who also served as governor, was married to Harris's daughter Catherine.

References

External links

*
Elisha Harris
at
National Governors Association
' , - 1791 births 1861 deaths Governors of Rhode Island Lieutenant Governors of Rhode Island People from Coventry, Rhode Island Politicians from Cranston, Rhode Island Rhode Island Whigs Rhode Island Republicans Burials in Rhode Island Whig Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American politicians {{RhodeIsland-politician-stub