Louisa (Northrup) Harris (abt. 1816 - bef. 1859)

Born about 1816 in Alabama Territory, United States

Ancestors

Wife of Benjamin G. Harris — married 25 Jan 1834 in Montgomery, Alabama, United States

Descendants

Died before 1859 before about age 43 in Hinds, Mississippi, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Julie Mangano [send private message]

Biography

Some researchers say she was born in Connecticut, but this seems unlikely. Connecticut was the birth place of her father's older siblings, but her father was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. His first marriage took place in Georgia, and since the family continued living in southern states like Georgia, Alabama, and Florida, it seems unlikely that his children were born in the north.

There was a Lois Northrop, the daughter of John Wilkes Northrop, who appears to be confused with the Louisa Northrop of this profile. Lois Northrop was born in Connecticut on 29 July 1816. She married Eli Sherman on 25 December 1844 in New Milford, Connecticut. Lois Northrop Sherman died on 31 October 1854 in New Milford, Litchfield, Connecticut. Louisa and Lois were distant cousins, both descendants of Joseph Northrop. Information about these two people -- Louisa/Lois -- has been co-mingled in numerous Ancestry family trees. The biggest error, besides the connection to the wrong parents, is that they show Lois married to Louisa's husband Benjamin G. Green instead of Eli Sherman.

According to The Northrup-Northrop Genealogy, the father of the Louisa Northrop of this profile was David Austin Northrop, born in 1791 in Poughkeepsie, New York. He made his way south to Georgia where he married his first wife, Louisa's unnamed mother. Louisa claimed in the 1850 census that she was born in Alabama. She may have been born in Georgia and raised in Alabama, where her mother died and her father remarried. Since she was the younger of her mother's two children, it's possible that by the time of her birth, the family had moved from Georgia to Alabama. Son David, Louisa's half brother, was born in Pensacola, Florida, just across the border from Mobile, Alabama. It's possible there was not an ardulous journey involved in the family's move from Alabama to Florida. Belleville, Alabama, the place of her father David Northrop's death, was just 82 miles north of Pensacola, Florida. See: https://bit.ly/2Vsop5g.

The Northrup-Northrop Genealogy ^[1]

"316 DAVID AUSTIN NORTHROP (Drake, Enos, Jeremiah, Jeremiah, Joseph), b. 1791, Poughkeepsie, N. Y.; m. in Georgia, 1st, __________________ , and had 2 children; m., 2d, in Alabama, Mrs. Baugh, by whom he had 3 children. Went South from Poughkeepsie, in Alabama, and later went to Pensacola, Fla., and engaged in the hotel business. D. 1841, at Belleville, Ala.

By 1st wife:

i Emily.

ii Louisa.

By 2d wife:

iii Frances, b. Oct. 2, 1830; m. John D. Sneadiker, who d. about 1864. Had 1 s., Louis. She d. 1849.

iv David Austin, b. March 6, 1833, at Pensacola, Fla.

v Eliza Rebecca, b. July 7, 1836; m. William Riley; d. 1866; 2 children: (1) Fanny, m. Mason, of Birmingham, Ala. ; (2) William B. ; m. Miss Westcott, of Montgomery, Ala." [emphasis added]

Marriage Record ^[2]

Name: Loueser [sic] Northrop

Gender: Female

Marriage Date: 25 Jan 1834

Marriage Place: , Montgomery, Alabama

Spouse: Benjamin Harriss

FHL Film Number: 1492030

1850 United States Federal Census ^[3]

Name: Harris

Gender: Female

Age: 35

Birth Year: abt 1815

Birthplace: Alabama

Home in 1850: Kemper , Mississippi , USA

Line Number: 31

Dwelling Number: 1097

Family Number: 1097

Household Members: Name Age

[Mrs.] Harris 35

Leigh Harris 14

Robert Harris 8

Ben Harris 6

John Harris 4

Louisa Northrop Harris died between 1853 and 1858. On 08 March 1859, her widowed husband married for the second time, indicating Louisa's death occurred before that date. ^[4] A copy of the family's entry in the 1860 census lists her children, the last of whom was born in 1853. While it's possible that her death was associated with childbirth complications in 1853, it seems unlikely her husband would have remained unmarried for 6 years with four children under the age of 10, including an infant. Louisa likely died closer to 1859.

1860 United States Federal Census ^[5]

Name: B G Harris

Age: 48

Birth Year: abt 1812

Gender: Male

Birth Place: Georgia

Home in 1860: Hinds, Mississippi

Post Office: Byram

Dwelling Number: 543

Family Number: 554

Occupation: Md

Real Estate Value: 1600

Personal Estate Value: 1000

Household Members: Name Age

B G Harris 48

C Harris 24

Lee Harris 24

Robt Harris 17

Benj Harris 14

John Harris 12

Willie Harris 7

J Deal 4 [step-son]

Sources

1. ↑ Northrup, A. Judd, The Northrup-Northrop genealogy : a record of the known descendants of Joseph Northrup, who came from England in 1637, and was one of the original settlers of Milford, Conn., in 1639 ; with lists of Northrups and Northrops in the Revolution; published by Grafton Press, New York, 1908, page 152, Louisa Northrop, daughter of David Austin Northrop.
2. ↑ Alabama, Marriages, 1816-1957. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013. Louisa Northrop married Benjamin Harris on 25 January 1834 in Montgomery County, Alabama. Ancestry.com. Alabama, Select Marriage Indexes, 1816-1942 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, 2014.
3. ↑ 1850 United States Federal Census, Mrs. [Louisa] Harris, age 35, born about 1815 in Alabama, Year: 1850; Census Place: Kemper, Mississippi; Roll: 374; Page: 213A. Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
4. ↑ Hunting For Bears, comp.. Mississippi Marriages, 1776-1935. Benjamin Harris married Caroline Deal on 08 March 1859 in Rankin County, Mississippi. Ancestry.com. Mississippi, Compiled Marriage Index, 1776-1935 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
5. ↑ 1860 United States Federal Census, B.G. Harris, age 48, Mississippi, Year: 1860; Census Place: Hinds, Mississippi; Page: 561; Family History Library Film: 803582. Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.