Walter Alexander Harris (November 17, 1875 – March 15, 1958) was a lawyer, writer, and U.S. Army officer in the early 20th century. He served in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, among other conflicts.

Biography

Harris was born in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

, on November 17, 1875, to

Nathaniel Edwin Harris Nathaniel Edwin Harris (January 21, 1846 – September 21, 1929) was an American lawyer and politician, and the 61st Governor of Georgia. Early life Harris was born in Jonesboro, Tennessee on January 21, 1846, to Edna (née Haynes) and Alex ...

. He graduated from the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

in 1895 with an A.B., and he received an

LL.B. A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

in 1896 and an

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

in 1928. Harris entered the Georgia Bar Association in 1896, and he practiced law at the firm Harris, Russel, Weaver, and Watkins, in Macon. He also served on the Bibb County Board of Education from 1905 to 1912. He also was a member of the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...

. Harris joined the Third Georgia Volunteer Infantry on May 1, 1898. While a private upon joining, he had reached the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

by April 22, 1899. He served in Cuba with the Army of Occupation. Harris commanded the

Georgia National Guard The Georgia National Guard is the National Guard of the United States, National Guard of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, and consists of the Georgia Army National Guard and the Georgia Air National Guard. (The Georgia State Defe ...

on the border with

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

from 1916 to 1917. He also participated in World War I, commanding the 61st Infantry Brigade in the 31st Infantry Division from 1917 to 1918, and commanding the 31st Division from September 28 to November 14, 1918. He also was the commanding general of the

174th Infantry Brigade The 174th Infantry Brigade is an infantry brigade of the United States Army based at the Fort Dix entity of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey. A multi-component training unit, the brigade provides operational training and increased r ...

in the 87th Infantry Division, returning to the U.S. in the latter command on January 10, 1919. Honorably discharged from the U.S. Army on January 21, 1919, Harris became a major general (retired) in the Georgia National Guard. In addition to Harris's other positions, he served as the president of the Macon Historical Association and was a commander of the Georgia Department of the American Legion. He researched the

Creek Indians The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsWesleyan College Wesleyan College is a Private university, private, Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's Colleges in the Southern United States, women's college in Macon, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1836, Wesleyan was the fi ...

, he was a

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

. He wrote two books, ''Emperor Brim'' and ''Here the Creeks Sat Down''.

Personal life

Harris married Emily Williamson on January 9, 1901. She died in June 1936. Harris was a member of the Democratic Party and was an

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

and a Kiwanian.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Walter Alexander 1875 births 1958 deaths People from Macon, Georgia University of Georgia alumni 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American male writers United States Army generals of World War I United States Army generals National Guard (United States) generals Military personnel from Georgia (U.S. state) Georgia National Guard personnel 19th-century United States Army personnel