James Harrison (1628 - 1687)

Husband of Anne (Heath) Harrison — married 1 Jul 1655 in England

Descendants

Died 6 Oct 1687 at about age 59 in Bucks, Pennsylvania

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Biography

James was a Friend (Quaker)

James was babtised into the Church of England at Wigan Parish, County Lancashire on 22 Jun 1628.^[1]

James Harrison of Kendall, Westmoreland County married Anne Heath of Horton, Stafford County on " the first day of the fifth month 1655" (1 Jul 1655) at Cheshire monthly meeting.^[2] James and Anne Harrison had aa daughter Phebe.

James Harrison of Bolton, County of Lancashire, was a shoemaker by trade and became a devoted preacher and leader of the Quaker religion. Court records indicate that in 1674 and 1679 James was persecuted, detained and fined regularly for his Quaker beliefs and activities.^[3]James' persistence and determination in his faith evetually caught the attention of William Penn who was seeking committed Quaker talent to staff his newly aquired Pennsylvania colony.

Before leaving England, james was designated a lawful agent of William Penn and tasked with the sale of Pennsylvania land in tracts of 250 acres or more. James was subsequently appointed Proprietary commissioner of property and became Penn's personal agent in the colony. Penn also granted James 5000 acres in Pennsylvania for his own use.^[4]

James departed Liverpool for the colony of Pennsylvania on 5 Sep 1682 aboard the Submission. He was 54. James traveled with several family members including his wife Anna (58), mother Agnes (80), daughter Phebe Pemberton (22), son-in-law Phineas Pemberton, (32) and Pemberton grandchildren Abigail (2) and Joseph (4 mo). ^[5]They arrived in Choptank, Maryland on "21 9th mo. 1682" (21 Nov 1682).^[6]

James was elected to the Council of the Province on 10 Mar 1682 and was appointed one of William Penn's Proprietary Commissioners of property and agent of Penn's personal affairs. In 1685 James was a appoined to be one of three Provincial justices for the colony.^[7]

"James Harrison was the chief steward and trusted friend of Penn from 1682 until his death in 1687"^[8]

On the "tenth day of the twelveth month, 1688" (10 Feb 1688) Letters of Administration were granted to Anne Harrison "upon the estate of her late husband James Harrison deceased the 6th day of the eigth month last past" (6 Oct 1687).^[9]

James is buried at Pennsbury Manor Cemetery, Morrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania.^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ Wigan, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1580-1812. Baptism of James Harrison, 22 Jun 1682, father: Peter
2. ↑ Copy of marriage record posted to Find A Grave: Memorial #5724617
3. ↑ Nightingale, Benjamin, Early stages of the Quaker movement in Lancashire. London: Congregational Union of England and Wales, 1921, pp46, 54, 139-43. https://archive.org/details/earlystagesquake00nighuoft/page/n6
4. ↑ Davis, William Watts Hart, History of Bucks County Pennsylvania: from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time. Pennsylvania: Doylestown, Democrat Book and Job Office Print, 1876, p55 & 86. https://books.google.com/books?id=bwtNS1C8ljwC&q=Harrison#v=onepage&q=Harrison&f=false
5. ↑ The Sailing of the Ship "Submission" in 1682 with a true copy of the vessel log in Publications of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, Miscellany No. 1, Philadelphia: Edward Stern and Co., Inc, January 1895, p7.
6. ↑ "A Partial List of the Families Who Resided in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Prior to 1687, with the Date of Their Arrival." The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 9, no.2 (1885): 223-33. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20084704.
7. ↑ Davis, 1876, p86.
8. ↑ Davis, 1876, p181.
9. ↑ A registry of wills, letters of administration, and the names of executors, guardians and trustees, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, 1684-1693, p38. FamilySearch.org, database, image 23. Letters of Administration
10. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #5724617

• Wigan, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1580-1812

James Harison

Baptism Date: 22 Jun 1628

Baptism Place: Wigan, All Saints, Lancashire, England

Parish as it Appears: Wigan

Father: Petter Harison

• Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Quaker Birth, Marriage, and Death Registers, 1578-1837 Image

James Harrison

Spouse: Anne Heath

Marriage Date: 1 Jul 1655

Marriage Place: England

Meeting: Monthly Meeting of Cheshire, formerly Morley

• U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 Image

James Harrison

Death Date abt 1687

Burial Place Pennsylvania, USA

Residence Date 8 Oct 1687

Residence Date on Image Eighth 1687 08

Residence Place Bucks, Pennsylvania

Event Type Burial

Monthly Meeting Bucks Quarterly Meeting

Yearly Meeting Philadelphia

Yearly Meeting

Meeting State Pennsylvania

Meeting County Bucks