Harrison Gray Otis (October 8, 1765October 28, 1848), was a businessman, lawyer, and politician, becoming one of the most important leaders of the United States' first political party, the

Federalists The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of de ...

. He was a member of the

Otis family The Otis family is a Boston Brahmin family from Massachusetts best known for its involvement in early American politics. History The family was originally landowning farmers of Glastonbury, Somerset, the Otises went to New England during the Puri ...

. One of the wealthiest men of Boston, Otis was reportedly worth at least US$800,000 in 1846, .

Early life

Otis was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 8, 1765 to Elizabeth (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Gray) and

Samuel Allyne Otis Samuel Allyne Otis (November 24, 1740 – April 22, 1814) was the first Secretary of the United States Senate, serving for its first 25 years. He also served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and was a delegate to the Confederation C ...

. His uncle was American colonial leader and activist James Otis, and his father was active in early American politics as a member of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

state house of representatives, delegate to Massachusetts state constitutional convention, and

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

delegate from Massachusetts. His aunt was

Mercy Otis Warren Mercy Otis Warren (September 14, eptember 25, New Style1728 – October 19, 1814) was an American activist poet, playwright, and pamphleteer during the American Revolution. During the years before the Revolution, she had published poems and pla ...

, a well-known poet. Otis himself graduated from

Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...

in 1773 and

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1783, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1786 when he commenced practice in Boston.

Career

In 1794 he was elected to the

Massachusetts legislature The Massachusetts General Court (formally styled the General Court of Massachusetts) is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the earliest days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, w ...

, and in 1796 was appointed by President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

to be U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts. In 1797, he was elected

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from Massachusetts as a Federalist and a strong advocate for centralized government, in which office he served until 1801. He was appointed United States U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts by President

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

(1801–1802), and again served in the state legislature from 1802 to 1817, serving several terms as President of the state senate (1805–1806, 1808–1811). He was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

in 1804. In subsequent years, Otis was elected

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from Massachusetts (1817–1822), and then

Mayor of Boston The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a mayor to a four- ...

(1829–1831).

Judicial career

In 1814, in the midst of his political career, he was also named a judge of the court of common pleas (1814–1818), and played a leading role as delegate to the controversial

Hartford Convention The Hartford Convention was a series of meetings from December 15, 1814, to January 5, 1815, in Hartford, Connecticut, United States, in which the New England Federalist Party met to discuss their grievances concerning the ongoing War of 1812 and ...

in which

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

's secession from the United States was discussed. Overall, it led to the demise of the Federalists, and Otis's political ambitions suffered. Otis subsequently defended the convention in his ''Letters Developing the Character and Views of the Hartford Convention'' (1820) and his ''Letters in Defence of the Hartford Convention'' (1824). Otis was involved in a major financial scandal during the site selection for the

Massachusetts State House The Massachusetts State House, also known as the Massachusetts Statehouse or the New State House, is the List of state capitols in the United States, state capitol and seat of government for the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, lo ...

. Boston was determined to remain the state capitol, and appointed Otis to a town committee to purchase land and donate it to the state. He did so, and also quietly arranged his own private purchase of adjoining from the agent of

John Singleton Copley John Singleton Copley (July 3, 1738 – September 9, 1815) was an Anglo-American painter, active in both colonial America and England. He was probably born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Richard and Mary Singleton Copley, both Anglo-Irish. Afte ...

, then living in England. After a decade of legal arguments, the sale was upheld, and Otis and the

Mount Vernon Proprietors Mount Vernon Proprietors was a real estate development syndicate operating in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded at the end of the 18th century, it developed land on the south slope of Beacon Hill into a desirable residential neighborhood. History In ...

developed a large part of Beacon Hill. Otis was an overseer of

from 1810 to 1823, and a fellow of the university from 1823 to 1825, as well as one of the original incorporators of the Boston Bank. In 1812, Otis also became a founding member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...

Personal life

On May 31, 1790, Otis married

Sally Foster Sally M. Foster is a Scottish archaeologist and senior lecturer at the University of Stirling. She specialises in the archaeology of Scotland, particularly the Picts and their neighbours in the early medieval period. Education and career Fos ...

, the daughter of prominent merchant William Foster. During the course of his lifetime, he built not one, but three, grand houses in quick succession (see

Harrison Gray Otis House There are three houses named the Harrison Gray Otis House in Boston, Massachusetts. All were built by noted American architect Charles Bulfinch for the same man, Federalist lawyer and politician Harrison Gray Otis. First Harrison Gray Otis House ...

), all designed by noted architect

Charles Bulfinch Charles Bulfinch (August 8, 1763 – April 15, 1844) was an early American architect, and has been regarded by many as the first American-born professional architect to practice.Baltzell, Edward Digby. ''Puritan Boston & Quaker Philadelphia''. Tra ...

. Together, Harrison and Sally were the parents of eleven children, including: * Elizabeth Gray Otis (1791–1824), who married George Williams Lyman (1786–1880), a director of the

Boston and Lowell Railroad The Boston and Lowell Railroad was a railroad that operated in Massachusetts in the United States. It was one of the first railroads in North America and the first major one in the state. The line later operated as part of the Boston and Maine R ...

. * Harrison Gray Otis, Jr. (1792–1827), who married Eliza Henderson Boardman (1796–1873). * Sally Ann Otis (1793–1819), who married Israel Thorndike, Jr. (1785–1867), son of merchant

Israel Thorndike Israel Thorndike (April 30, 1755 – May 9, 1832) was an American merchant, politician, industrialist, and slave trader. He made a fortune in privateering and the Old China Trade, was active in Federalist Party politics during the Thomas Jefferson ...

. * Sophia Harrison Otis (1799–1874), who married Andrew Ritchie Jr. (1782–1862). * James William Otis (1800–1869), who married Martha C. Church (1807–1888) in 1825. * William Foster Otis (1801–1858), who married Emily Marshall (1807–1836). He died in Boston on October 28, 1848, and is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery,

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

Descendants

Through his son William, he was the grandfather of Emily Marshall Otis (1832–1906), who married historian and educator Samuel Eliot. Through his son James, he was the grandfather of James Otis, a New York State Senator and society leader. A descendant was J. Wadsworth Ritchie (1861–1924), son of Montgomery Harrison Ritchie, who died in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, and the first husband of Cornelia Wadsworth Ritchie Adair.

Gallery

Image:2nd Harrison Gray Otis House.jpg, 2nd Harrison Gray Otis House,

Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts Beacon Hill is a historic neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, and the hill upon which the Massachusetts State House resides. The term "Beacon Hill" is used locally as a metonym to refer to the state government or the legislature itself, mu ...

. Image:Harrison Gray Otis grave.jpg, Harrison Gray Otis' grave at

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery is the first rural cemetery, rural, or garden, cemetery in the United States, located on the line between Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, Watertown in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middl ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Otis, Harrison Gray 1765 births 1848 deaths People from colonial Boston Federalist Party United States senators Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Harvard University alumni Massachusetts state senators Presidents of the Massachusetts Senate Mayors of Boston Members of the American Antiquarian Society Otis family United States Attorneys for the District of Massachusetts United States senators from Massachusetts Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts