Harrison Gray Otis (lawyer)
| Harrison Gray Otis | |
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United States Senator from Massachusetts |
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In office March 4, 1817 – May 30, 1822 |
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| Preceded by | Joseph Bradley Varnum |
| Succeeded by | James Lloyd |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 8th district |
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In office March 4, 1797 – March 3, 1801 |
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| Preceded by | Fisher Ames |
| Succeeded by | William Eustis |
| 3rd Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts | |
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In office January 5, 1829 – January 2, 1832 |
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| Preceded by | Josiah Quincy III |
| Succeeded by | Charles Wells |
| Delegate from Massachusetts to the Hartford Convention | |
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In office 1814–1815 |
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| President of the Massachusetts Senate | |
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In office 1805 – 1806 1808–1811 |
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| United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | |
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In office 1796–1796 |
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| Preceded by | Christopher Gore |
| Succeeded by | John Davis |
| Personal details | |
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October 8, 1765 Boston, Massachusetts |
| Died | October 28, 1848 (aged 83) Boston, Massachusetts |
| Political party | Federalist |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Profession | Law |
Harrison Gray Otis (October 8, 1765 – October 28, 1848), was a businessman, lawyer, and politician, becoming one of the most important leaders of the United States' first political party, the Federalists. He was a member of the Otis family.
One of the wealthiest men of Boston during his time, Otis was reportedly worth at least US$800,000 in 1846, which in 2014 would be equivalent to $6.5 Billion.
Otis was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 8, 1765 to Elizabeth (Gray) and Samuel Allyne Otis. His uncle was Revolutionary War leader James Otis, and his father was active in early American politics as a member of Massachusetts state house of representatives, delegate to Massachusetts state constitutional convention, and Continental Congress delegate from Massachusetts. His aunt was Mercy Otis Warren, a well-known poet. A descendant was Montgomery Harrison Ritchie, who died in the American Civil War and was the first husband of Cornelia Wadsworth Ritchie Adair.
Otis himself graduated from Boston Latin School in 1773 and Harvard University in 1783, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1786, when he commenced practice in Boston, and married Sally Foster on May 31, 1790. In 1794 he was elected to the Massachusetts legislature, and in 1796 was appointed by President George Washington to be U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts. In 1797, he was elected U.S. Representative from Massachusetts as a Federalist and a strong advocate for centralized government, in which office he served until 1801. He was appointed United States U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts by President John Adams (1801–1802), and again served in the state legislature from 1802 to 1817, serving several terms as President of the state senate (1805–1806, 1808–1811). He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1804. In subsequent years, Otis was elected U.S. Senator from Massachusetts (1817–1822), and then Mayor of Boston (1829–1831).
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