George P. Harrison Jr.

Born at "Monteith Plantation," 12 miles from Savannah, Georgia, George Paul Harrison, attended Effingham Academy and the Georgia Military Institute at Marietta, Georgia. His father, George Paul Harrison, was a wealthy planter, state legislator and brigadier general of Georgia militia during the American Civil War. His mother was Thurza Adelaide (Guinn) Harrison. ==Military service==

On January 3, 1861, at the onset of tensions which would lead to the Civil War later that April, Harrison entered the Confederate States Army as second lieutenant of the First Georgia Regulars. He later participated in the seizure of Fort Pulaski. After reaching the rank of Brigadier General, Harrison commanded a brigade of A.P. Stewart's corps. At the time, he was 23 years old, the youngest Brigadier-General in the Confederate Army. During the course of the war, Harrison was wounded three times. The last time at the Battle of Olustee, where a horse was shot out from under him. Harrison commanded a prison camp at Florence, South Carolina, in late 1864, where 25,000 Union prisoners were interned. He was commended by Union prisoners for his humane treatment of them. During the war, Harrison undertook the command responsibility of brigadier general, leading a brigade during the Carolinas campaign and at the Battle of Bentonville, and elsewhere. Although he received a provisional appointment to that rank, it was never officially confirmed before the end of hostilities. ==Legal and political career==

After the war, Harrison moved to Alabama in 1865, where he studied law. He served as commandant of cadets at Auburn University. He was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Auburn, Alabama, and also worked as a planter. He served as member of the constitutional convention of Alabama in 1875. Harrison served in the State senate between 1878 and 1884 and was its president in 1882–1884. He served as delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1892. Harrison was elected as a Democrat to the Fifty-third Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of William C. Oates. He was reelected to the Fifty-fourth Congress and served from November 6, 1894, to March 3, 1897. ==Later years and legacy==

After his final term in Congress, he resumed the practice of law in Opelika, Alabama. He served as delegate to the State constitutional convention in 1901. George Paul Harrison, died in Opelika, Alabama, on July 17, 1922. He was interred in Rosemere Cemetery. ==References==