Blount-Greene-Maury County TN Archives Biographies.....Harris, John ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tn/tnfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Terese Mitchell teresemitchell@optilink.us September 11, 2011, 4:26 pm Source: Colonel George Stewart and Margaret Harris Author: Robert Stewart Background Information The Mifflintown Document is a contemporaneous account detailing the descendants of Robert Harris and Dorothy Wiley. The Scotch-Irish immigrants touched land in Philadelphia, ca. 1725. The Harris sons and their families spread throughout the young colonies becoming intricately woven into the fabric,faith and service of the United States of America. The document detailing the Harris family is found in the book by author Robert Stewart: Colonel George Steuart and his wife Margaret Harris: Their Ancestors and Descendants with Appendixes of Related Families Portraits and Illustrations A Genealogical History By Robert Stewart, D.D., LL.D This book was Printed at the "Civil and Military Gazette" Press, 1907 in Lahore, India pp.398-401 Begin Transcription APPENDIX No. XI T H E M I F F L I N T O W N D O C U M E N T A copy of this document was sent the author by John Harris9, M.D., of Philadelphia, Jan. 18, 1865. At the conclusion he wrote: “The foregoing was copied Aug. 10, 1855, by John Harris9 (then resident in Philadelphia) from two separate half sheets of cap paper, in the handwriting of his father, James Harris7, in the possession of Mrs. Thomazin Potter, a granddaughter of James Harris7. John Harris9, the copyist of the foregoing, born Dec. 31st, 1792, was the son of James Harris7, who was the son of John Harris2 who was the son of James Harris1 (by his second wife, Janet McClure), who was the son of Edward Harris1 and Flora Douglas. The family of James Harris7, the copyist’s father, were Jane5, John, Eliza Grizzel, James D., William11, Joseph, and Andrew, besides Robert and a female child who died in infancy. Jane, John, and Eliza were born in Mifflintown, the others in or near Bellefonte”. In view of the above statement, therefore, it seems probable that James Harris7 of Bellafonte was the author of the document. At the time of writing (Dec. 20, 1801) he was about 45 years old. He was also a very careful, cultured man and no doubt put nothing down but what was thoroughly established as correct. He probably, too, gathered up his facts and penned them at Mifflintown where he was born, where there were older records, and where several older Harrises resided who could aid him in his researches. These persons were his eldest sister Jane5, his mother Jane1 (then in her 78th year), his uncle James Harris3 (then 82 or 83 years old), and probably his mother's cousin, Mrs. Turbett (nee Dolly Harris1) besides others who could give more or less help. The oldest of all, Thomas Harris1, had died 16 days previously, and his death seems to have suggested and stimulated the effort to get a written record of genealogies before it was entirely too late. The antecedent probability that this document is perfectly trustworthy has been confirmed by all subsequent investigations (excepting in regard to William Harris2 and his wife-see Appendix XVIII), and the writer considers it fortunate that he has had such a record to guide his researches. It is hardly necessary to say that the "superior" numbers inserted are not original, but added by the author of this book as a guide to identify. The words bracketed are also the author's. This document is without a heading and reads as follows:- Edward1 and Charles1 Harris, being dissenters, were driven from Ayrshire, in Scotland, at the time of the persecution of the Protestants In the reign of Charles II, or of his successor, James. They settled in County Donegal, near Rapho, Ireland. They were possessed of a valuable estate in Scotland, which was lost on account of their abandoning it. Edward1 was married to Miss Flora Douglas, of the famous family of that name, who resided near the borders of England. He had sons: Edward2, Robert1 and James1. Robert1 was married to Dorothy Wiley. They had children: John1, William1, James2, Margaret1, Thomas1, Samuel1, Robert2 and Charles2. James1, son of Edward1, and Flora Douglas, married Mary Simpson, by whom he had William2, Ann1 and James3. By a second marriage with Janet McClure he had a son, John2. Edward2, son of Edward1, and Flora Douglas, married ...............and had children, Robert3, William3 and Mary1. John1, son of Robert1 and Dorothy Wiley, had Margaret2, Jane1, Robert4,and James4 by his first wife Grizzel Steel, daughter of Margaret Gray; by a second wife, Rebecca McBay, he had William4, Elizabeth1, Thomas2 and John3. William1, son of Robert1 and Dorothy Wiley, married Elizabeth Glen, daughter of R. Glen and Jane Scott, by whom he had Robert6, James5, George1, Elizabeth2, William5, John4, Jane2, Susan1, Margaret3, Sarah1, Dolly1, Thomas3, Isabella....... Ireland. James2, son of R. and D. Wiley, married .........Mcllhenny, by whom he had Robert6, Samuel2 and others. The family moved to the Carolinas. Margaret1, sister of James2, married Alexander Poer, to whom he had Jane, Dorothy, William and Samuel........ Pennsylvania. Thomas1, son of R., and Dorothy Wiley, married Mary McKinney1, by whom he had Robert7, Mathew1, Margaret4, Margaret5, John6 Catharine1, and Mary2. He died Dec. 4th, 1801,............Pennsylvania. Samuel1, brother of Thomas1, married........ Laird, by whom he had several children in Carolina. Robert2, his brother, married Fanny Cunningham, by whom he had Robert8, William6, Elizabeth3, Martha1 and Margaret6..........Carolina. Charles2, his brother, married Mcllhenny; had a large family in Carolina. William2, son of James1, and Mary Simpson, married Catharine Wilson; emigrated from Ireland; settled at Swartara; had James6, John7, William7 who died young, Sarah2, Mary3, and Robert9. Ann1, sister of William, married David Caldwell1; emigrated to Pennsylvania; moved to Carolina; had a family of children. After the death of D. Caldwell she married Robert Harris2, son of Robert1 and Dorothy Wiley. James3, son of James Harris1 and Mary Simpson, never married, and is at this time (Dec. 20, 1801) living with his sister-in-law, widow of his half brother, John2, at Mifflintown, Mifflin Co., Penn'a. John Harris2, son of James Harris1 and Jane McClure, first married Jane Poer, daughter of Alexander Poer and Margaret Harris1, Mifflin, who died without issue. By his second wife, Jane Harris1,daughter of John Harris1 and Grizzel Steel (born Feb. 7, 1721) had Jane3, James7, William8, Grizzel1, Margaret7 and Ann2 ............. Penn'a. He died Feb.[28], 1794. Robert Harris3, son of Edward2 the younger and..........., married, and had Margaret8, Jane4, and Margery1. By a second wife, Margaret Mcllmunn, he had Robert10, Mary4 and William9. He died in Carolina. Margaret Harris2, daughter of John1, and Grizzel Steel, married Andrew Buchanan1, to whom she had Jane, Mary, John, James and Andrew2. They resided near Gilligordon, Donegal, Ireland. James4, son of John Harris1 and Grizzel Steel, married Elizabeth Harris3, daughter of Robert2 and Fanny Cunningham. By her he had a number of children in Carolina, where he died about 1794. Robert4, his brother, died without issue. William4, son of John Harris1 and his second wife Rebecca McBay, married Margaret Wilson, by whom he had John8 and a number of other children. They resided in South Carolina. Thomas2, brother of Willam4, married in South Carolina. John3, his brother, who had lived with his half brother-in- law John2, and sister Jane1, went to Carolina, married........., by whom he had William10 and other children. After her death he married .............by whom he has other children. He now resides near Mayville [or Maryville], Blount Co., Tennessee. His children are William10, John Baird, Elizabeth4, Robert Marklin, Mathew Handy, and Joseph Gilliland------------1801 NOTES ON THE ABOVE For accounts of Edward Harris1, Flora Douglas, Robert Harris1, Dorothy Wiley, Thomas Harris1 and Margaret Harris5, see special sketches in Parts III and IV of this book. For an account of John Harris2 of Mifflintown, and his descendants see pages 92, 93, and App. No. XVII. For Mathew Harris1 and his descendants, see pages 94 to 97, and Appendix No. XXI. For Robert Harris7 see pages 97, 98, 110. For John Harris6 and his descendants see pages 94 to 96 and App. No XX. For Catherine Harris1 and her descendants see pages 94, 95, and App. XIX. For Mary Harris2 and her descendants see pages 101, 102, and App. No. XXIII. For the Carolina Harrises see App. No XXXV. For William Harris2 and his family see page 83 (note) and App. No. XVIII. Some of the family of William Harris1 lived for a time in Harford Co., Maryland--- see page 93. Margaret3 married a Fulton---see App. No. VI; Dolly1, a Turbett---see App. No. XXVII; Isabella married her cousin Robert Harris7---see page 98. End Transcription Additional Comments: This Harris line has been place in DNA Group 3. We hope to locate a Harris male that connects to John Harris one of the brothers from Ireland. I descend from John Harris and Rebecca McBay's son John born about 1744 and his oldest son, William born 1779 in South Carolina, thought to be the Abbeville area. John took his children and relocated about 1795 to Blount, Tennessee. William married Jane Trippett in Blount, TN. She was the daughter of Jonathan Trippett. Jane Trippett predeceased her husband and about 1838, William and many of his children and their families moved down Old Federal Road to Murray County, Georgia. Several other allied families- the Henrys, McKamys, Dunns, etc... also relocated at this time and all started the Shumach Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Murray County, Georgia. John Nichol Harris was the son of William Harris and Jane Trippett. He married Nancy Garner also of Blount. They both relocated to Murray and raised a large family there. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/tn/blount/bios/harris14bs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/tnfiles/ File size: 11.2 Kb