Burr Harrison

Burr Harrison (June 16, 1734 – August 2, 1790) was a Virginia planter, soldier and politician who served in the Virginia militia during American Revolutionary War, then two terms in the Virginia House of Delegates representing Prince William County. Early and family life Born at his father's Chappawomsic plantation (other spellings include "Chippawamsic") in Prince William County in 1734, Harrison became the fifth man in his family to share the same name, although he would become the first of that name to serve in the Virginia General Assembly. Burr Harrison (1637–1706) had fled the armies of Oliver Cromwell and emigrated from near Winchester, England to the Virginia Colony, then became one of the negotiators with the Piscataway native Americans in 1699, established Chappawomsic plantation in what was then vast Stafford County, Virginia, where he died. He named one of his sons Burr Harrison (1668–1722), who became this man's father. However, either his uncle Captain Thomas Harrison (1665–1746) or cousin Thomas Harrison (1704–1774) became the first in the immediate family to serve in the House of Burgesses, representing Prince William County (which had been created from Stafford County). A cousin born in Fauquier County (later separated from Prince William County), Burr Harrison (1738–1802) also served in the revolutionary Patriot forces and farmed using enslaved labor, but moved to South Carolina, where he died. This Harrison family is distinct from the Harrison family further south in Virginia's Tidewater region, that gave rise to Benjamin Harrison. Burr Harrison received a private education appropriate for his class. He married Mary Ann Barnes, whose family also had plantations nearby, and the couple had four sons and five daughters. His daughter Sarah in 1763 married Col. Leven Powell, who would distinguish himself in the Continental Army before resigning for health reasons, then became an important politician, including serving as a presidential elector and two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.