Christopher Columbus Harris (January 28, 1842 – December 28, 1935) was an American lawyer, banker, and

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

veteran who represented

Alabama's 8th congressional district Alabama's 8th congressional district, now obsolete, was established in 1877. Alabama currently has Alabama Congressional Districts, seven congressional districts represented in the United States House of Representatives. According to the U.S ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1914 to 1915.

Early life

Harris was born in

Lawrence County, Alabama Lawrence County is a county in the northern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,073. The county seat is Moulton. The county was named after James Lawrence, a captain in the United States Navy from ...

near the community of Mount Hope. His education consisted of both the public schools and private tutoring.

Civil War

When the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

began, Harris enlisted in the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an List of historical unrecognized states and dependencies, unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United State ...

army. He was assigned to the Sixteenth Alabama Infantry, Company F. He progressed through the ranks, attaining the rank of lieutenant. At a point, Harris was captured and taken as a prisoner of war by the Union. He was held at Camp Chase, Ohio, until the war ended.

Postwar activities

Upon returning to Alabama, Harris served as Clerk of the

Circuit Court Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to: * Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases; * Courts that s ...

of Lawrence County from 1865 to 1867. He studied law and began to practice in

Moulton, Alabama Moulton is a city in Lawrence County, Alabama, and is included in the Decatur Metropolitan Area, as well as the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. Although it incorporated in 1819,Decatur, Alabama Decatur () is the largest city and county seat of Morgan County, Alabama, Morgan County (with a portion also in Limestone County, Alabama, Limestone County) in the U.S. state of Alabama. Nicknamed "The River City," it is located in North Alabam ...

, where he continued his practice of law. In 1887 he was instrumental in establishing the First National Bank of Decatur and served as its president until 1913.

Politics

In that year he established the Bank of Commerce and became its president. He also became the chairman of the Democratic executive committee for the 8th district and was elected to fill the unexpired term of William Richardson, who had died in office. He served from May 1914 until March 1915. He did not seek reelection.

Later life

After his Washington work, Harris returned to Alabama and served as president of City National Bank in Decatur. He was later named to the Chairmanship of the bank.

Death and burial

He died December 28, 1935 at the age of 93. He is buried in th
Decatur City Cemetery
Decatur, Alabama.

References

*Biographies of the United States Congres
Christopher Columbus Harris
Accessed 20 April 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Christopher Columbus 1842 births 1935 deaths Democratic Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives People from Lawrence County, Alabama Politicians from Decatur, Alabama Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Alabama Legislature