James A. Harrison was a politician from Arizona who served in the
1st Arizona State Legislature. He returned to the state senate in 1932 and served four more terms, three consecutively from 1932 through 1938. He operated the large Harrison ranch from the early 1900s through 1950, when he sold it to his son and grandson. He served on the Santa Cruz county board of supervisors from its inception through 1920. He was also on the city council of
Nogales, Arizona
Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...
, and served several terms as its mayor. Early in his life he was a stage coach driver for Wells Fargo.
Early life
Harrison was born in
Cloverdale, California
Cloverdale is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States; it is both the westernmost and the northernmost city in the San Francisco Bay Area. The San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad reached the area in 1872. The Cloverdale Ranche ...
on February 12, 1870. His family moved to
Casa Grande, Arizona
Casa Grande (O'odham language, O'odham: ''Wainom Wo:g'') is a city in Pinal County, Arizona, Pinal County, approximately halfway between Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona, Tucson, in the U.S. state of Arizona. According to the 2020 ...
in 1879, but moved on to
Tucson
Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
and then to
Lochiel, Arizona
Lochiel is a populated place and former border crossing in southern Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States, approximately 25 miles east of Nogales. Basically a ghost town, the townsite is located in the southwestern part of the San Rafael V ...
. His father, Richard Harrison, was one of the original trustees of the
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
. The cornerstone of
Old Main
Old Main is a term often applied to the original building present on college or university campuses in the United States. The building serves today as home to administrative offices, such as the president or provost, but in its early inception may ...
on the university's campus bears Richard's name. In 1907 he moved to
Nogales, Arizona
Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...
.
[ ][ ]
Political career
In 1902, he was elected to a four-year term as a Santa Cruz County supervisor. He was the first supervisor elected in Santa Cruz county, and served on the first board of supervisors.
In 1906, he was re-elected, and became chairman of the board of supervisors. He remained chairman of the county board of supervisors through 1920. Despite receiving the most number of votes of any candidate during the September primary, he lost in the general election to Republican S. F. Noon.
In 1911, he ran for the state senate seat from Santa Cruz County. He faced Bo J. Whiteside in the Democrat's primary, and after defeating him in the October primary, beat Allen T. Bird in December's general election, becoming the first state senator from Santa Cruz County. He chose not to run for re-election in 1914, leaving the way open for
Harry J. Karns
Harry John Karns (1880 – April 29, 1956) was an Arizona politician who served a single term in the Arizona State Senate during the 2nd Arizona State Legislature. He served 3 consecutive terms as mayor of Nogales from 1927 to 1933. While in of ...
to run unopposed for the Democrat's nomination.
In 1916 he was elected to the Nogales town council. In 1918, he was re-elected to the town council, and then was elected Mayor of Nogales. He ran for re-election for Mayor in 1920 and won. He again ran and won re-election for mayor in 1922. He did not run in 1924.
In 1930 he once again ran for the Santa Cruz board of supervisors, but lost to incumbent Fred Hannah.
Two years later, Harrison set his sights on returning to the state senate, and ran in the Democrat primary against incumbent
C. C. Crenshaw, beating him decisively. He ran unopposed in the November general election. He was re-elected in 1934, running unopposed in both the primary and general elections. Again in 1936 he ran for re-election. He easily defeated
H. C. Roesner in the Democrat primary, and then won against Republican Edward Alvarez in the general election. In 1938 he ran once more for re-election, and again faced off against Roesner in the primary. This time, however, Roesner narrowly defeated Harrison. Following his primary defeat, Harrison announced his retirement from politics. In an interesting twist, Roesner resigned from the senate in January, 1939, shortly after the
14th legislature convened. While Harrison was considered to replace him, the seat was eventually given to former state representative,
E. F. Bohlinger. Despite his announcement that he was retiring from politics, Harrison ran again in 1940, defeating Mary Stella Rosenberg in the Democrat primary. In the general election, he easily defeated his Republican opponent, J. A. McGimsey, by a greater than 2–1 margin. He did not run for re-election in 1942.
Life outside politics
Harrison married his wife in
Waynesburg, Pennsylvania
Waynesburg is a borough in Greene County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 4,001 at the 2020 census. It is located about south of Pittsburgh.
The region around Waynesburg is underlaid with several layers o ...
in 1894, where she was from, and then the two returned to Arizona. She was the granddaughter of
Morgan Ringland Wise
Morgan Ringland Wise (June 7, 1825 – April 13, 1903) was a member of the 46th and 47th Congress of the United States.
Biography
Wise was born in West Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on June 7, 1825. He engaged in gold mining in California in 1850 and ...
, a former U.S. Congressman from Pennsylvania, who moved to the Nogales area in Arizona.
[ ] The couple had one son, Billy, and two Daughters, Virginia and Mary.
He worked as a stagecoach driver for
Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with a significant global presence. The company operates in 35 countries and serves over 70 million customers worldwide. It is a systemically important fi ...
in the late 1880s, driving a route between
Benson and
Guymas, Sonora, Mexico.
Harrison was a well-known cattleman in southern Arizona, whose ranch, Rancho Bellotal, later known simply as the Harrison Ranch was located near
Nogales, Arizona
Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...
on the
Santa Cruz River, and covered 12 square miles.
He also owned other ranches, including one near
Carbó
Carbó is the municipal seat of Carbó Municipality of the state of Sonora, Mexico.
History
The founding dates from 1888, when the main railroad in Sonora began to be constructed. Carbó was one of the stations built between the port of Guayma ...
, in
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
,
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 ...
. He operated the Harrison Ranch until 1950, when he turned it over to his son, R. M. Harrison. The ranch remained in the family until it was sold in 1962, shortly before his death. He died on October 12, 1962, in a nursing home in Tucson.
Harrison was the president of The Santa Cruz Valley Bank and Trust Company.
His grandson, also named James A. Harrison, was married to Mary Gillem, the daughter of (then) Lieutenant General
Alvan Cullom Gillem Jr.[ ]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, James A.
Democratic Party Arizona state senators
20th-century members of the Arizona State Legislature
1870 births
1962 deaths