Norris was born on June 25, 1845, in
Sodus, New York, the son of farmer Rufus F. Norris and Louise Kingsley. Other than a brief period from 1867 to 1868, where he worked as a merchant in
Greenville, Pennsylvania, he lived in Sodus his whole life. Norris attended
Hillsdale College in Michigan and
Eastman Business College. He worked as a farmer in Sodus. He was a larger breeder of thoroughbred
Shorthorn cattle an extensive fruit grower. He was a member of the fruit firm Case & Norris. He was also very involved in the
Granger movement. He was a charter member of the Sodus Grange and was master for 16 years. He was also lecturer and master of the Wayne County Grange. He was elected overseer of the State Grange in 1894 and, in , he was elected master of the State Grange, holding office until 1906. As master, he helped grow the State Grange and instituted several new policies, including having a Grange Day at the New York State Fair, establishing the Farmers' and Trader Life Insurance Co., and offering a scholarship for
Cornell University. In his eight years as master, the State Grange gained 26,000 members and expanded into three more counties. In 1890, Norris was elected to the
New York State Assembly as a
Democrat, representing the
Wayne County 1st District. He sat in the Assembly in
1891. He lost the election to
John P. Jaeckel. In 1868, Norris married Georgianna Chipman of Wolcott. Their children were Mabel I., Floy E., Amy L., Louise E. and Mark. == References ==