John Harris (September 26, 1760 – November 1824) was a member of the

U.S. House of Representatives 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 ...

from New York, (cousin of Robert Harris) and was born at Harris Ferry, Pennsylvania (now

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

). He moved to

Aurelius, New York Aurelius is a town in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 2,610 at the 2020 census. The town was named after the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. It is at the western edge of the county and borders the city of Auburn. Hist ...

, becoming the first white settler in 1789, and operated the first ferry across

Cayuga Lake Cayuga Lake (,,) is the longest of central New York's glacial Finger Lakes, and is the second largest in surface area (marginally smaller than Seneca Lake) and second largest in volume. It is just under long. Its average width is , and it is ...

with partner James Bennett called the Harris-Bennett Ferry. He acted as an Indian interpreter and guide for white people who traded with and acquired land from upstate New York Indians, and opened the first dry goods store and tavern in Cayuga County, New York, in 1789. In 1800 he was a partner in the group that constructed the first bridge across

, further opening western New York to white settlers and securing routes for those traveling further west to Ohio, Michigan and beyond. Harris was long active in the militia and was appointed the rank of Colonel in the New York State Militia in 1806. Also in 1806, Harris was elected to the US House of Representatives as a

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...

to the Tenth Congress. He served only one term, 1807 to 1809. He did not run for reelection and returned to his businesses in the Cayuga Lake area. He commanded the One Hundred and Fifty-eighth New York Regiment in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. He died in

Bridgeport, New York Bridgeport is a hamlet (and census-designated place) located partly in the town of Sullivan in Madison County, New York, United States and partly in the town of Cicero in Onondaga County. The population was 1,490 at the 2010 census. Geography B ...

, in November 1824. Interment in the local cemetery.

References

The Political Graveyard
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, John 1760 births 1824 deaths Politicians from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania People from Cayuga County, New York American militiamen in the War of 1812 Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) People from Bridgeport, New York