Benjamin Butterworth Harris (1836 - 1909)

Born 17 Apr 1836 in Loveland, Clermont, Ohio

Ancestors

Husband of Elmira (Douglas) Harris — married 21 Apr 1857 in Johnson, Ohio

Descendants

Died 1 Aug 1909 at age 73 in Fort Collins, Larimar, Colorado

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Biography

Benjamin was born on April 17, 1836, near Loveland, Clermont, Ohio, the first of eleven children born to William Harris and Elizabeth Ballard. His name is one passed down through the family, with at least two other Benjamin Butterworth Harris's preceding him.

When only 14, about 1850, his family moved from Ohio to Johnson County, Iowa, where his father purchased land and began farming. Benjamin completed his schooling there while helping his father on the farm. The family was known for raising cattle.

On April 21, 1857, Benjamin was married to Elmira Douglas in Johnson County. She was the daughter of James and Mary Brown Douglas. The couple was to have seven children.

After his father died, in about 1868, Benjamin and a brother, James, sold the family farm in Johnson County, and moved to Cass County, in southwest Iowa where a number of their Harris relatives had already located. The pair bought land in Pymosa township, farming that land, and becoming active in civic affairs leading to the founding of Atlantic, now the Cass County seat.

Almost 20 years after their move to Atlantic, in 1886, the family moved west again, this time to Fort Collins, Larimer County, Colorado, where Benjamin purchased land adjacent to the state's agricultural college^[1]. He became known for his cattle stock, and for several years also managed the college's farm.

Upon retiring in 1908, he and his wife moved to California, but because of ill health, he returned to Fort Collins a year later, where he died on August 1, 1909. He is buried next to his wife in Grandview Cemetery in Fort Collins.

Born a Quaker, he maintained his religious values throughout his life.

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Sources

1. ↑ Various, Fort Collins Courier (Fort Collins, Colorado.), 8 Mar 1894, p. 4. Cit. Date: 31 Jan 2008.