Benjamin Harrison V | |
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5th Governor of Virginia | |
In office December 1, 1781 – December 1, 1784 |
|
Preceded by | Thomas Nelson, Jr. |
Succeeded by | Patrick Henry |
Personal details | |
Born |
Charles City County, Virginia |
April 5, 1726
Died | April 24, 1791 Charles City County, Virginia |
(aged 65)
Resting place | Berkeley Plantation, Charles City |
Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Bassett (m.1748; his death 1791) |
Children | 7, including William Henry Harrison and Carter Bassett Harrison |
Parents |
Benjamin Harrison IV Anne Carter |
Alma mater | College of William and Mary |
Profession | Planter, Politician, Merchant |
Signature |
Benjamin Harrison V (April 5, 1726 – April 24, 1791), from Charles City County, Virginia, was an American politician, planter, and merchant, a revolutionary leader and a Founding Father of the United States. He received his higher education at the College of William and Mary. Harrison was a representative to the Virginia House of Burgesses for Surry County, Virginia (1756–1758, 1785–1786), and Charles City County (1766–1776, 1787–1790). He was a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1777 and, during the Second Continental Congress, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Harrison later served as Virginia's fifth governor. His direct descendants include two U.S. Presidents, his son William Henry Harrison and great-grandson Benjamin Harrison.
Harrison was the eldest child of Benjamin Harrison IV and Anne Carter, and a grandson of Robert Carter I. The first Benjamin Harrison is said to have arrived in the colonies around 1630. British historian F. A. Inderwick contends that Benjamin IV is also descended from Thomas Harrison, a participant in the regicide of Charles I, but this is disputed. Benjamin IV and Anne built the manor house at Berkeley Plantation in Virginia and he served as a Justice of the Peace and represented Charles City County in the Virginia House of Burgesses.