Alfred Craven Harrison

Alfred Craven Harrison (February 20, 1846 – July 30, 1927) was an American banker and sugar dealer.

Early life[edit]

The Harrison Building in Philadelphia, c. 1900.

Harrison was born on February 20, 1846, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a son of George Leib Harrison (1811–1885) and Sarah Ann (née Waples) Harrison (1816–1850).[1] Among his siblings was Charles Custis Harrison, Provost of the University of Pennsylvania,[2] Harriet Morgan Harrison (wife of William W. Frazier)[3] and William Welsh Harrison (who built Grey Towers Castle).[4][5]

He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Arts in 1864,[2] later receiving the degree of Master of Arts.[1] In the summer of 1863, before the Battle of Gettysburg, Harrison enlisted in the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry and served three months during the U.S. Civil War.[1]

Career[edit]

In October 1864, he joined Harrison, Havemeyer and Co. at the Franklin Sugar Refinery, the largest refinery in Philadelphia. He continued with his brother and brother-in-law until the "retirement of the company in 1892"[1] when they sold their stock to H. O. Havemeyer and the American Sugar Refinery.[6]

He erected the Alfred Craven Harrison Building, at 4 South 15th Street, in Philadelphia. It was built between 1894 and 1895 (demolished 1969) and was designed by architects Cope and Stewardson.[1]

He served as a director of the Western Savings Fund, the Philadelphia National Bank. He was a trustee of the Franklin Institute, the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.[2]

Personal life[edit]

On April 4, 1872, Harrison was married to Catherine "Kate" DeForest Sheldon (1852–1918), a daughter of William Crawford Sheldon and Mary Eliza (née DeForest) Sheldon. Her brother was New York banker George R. Sheldon.[1] Together, they were the parents of five children:[2]

  • Mary deForest Harrison (1873–1952),[7] who married banker John White Geary, a son of Gov. John W. Geary.[8]
  • Alfred Craven Harrison, Jr. (1875-1925), physician and ethnographer, colleague of William Henry Furness III and Hiram M. Hiller, Jr.
  • Kate Harrison Prentice (1878–1941),[9] who married John Hill Prentice in 1899.[10]
  • Mildred Harrison (1879–1942), who married Count Karl von Holnstein of Bavaria, son of Count Maximilian von Holnstein.[11]
  • William Frazier Harrison (1884–1942),[12] who married Alison Gowen. They divorced in 1931 and he married Lisa Norris, a daughter of John Cushing Norris, 1932.[12]

Harrison, a member of the Philadelphia Country Club, the Corinthian Yacht Club, the Union League Club and the Rittenhouse Club, died in Philadelphia on July 30, 1927.[2] He left his estate to his four children valued at $6,445,357 which owed Federal taxes of $690,875.[13]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Harrison, William Welsh (1910). Harrison, Waples and Allied Families: Being the Ancestry of George Leib Harrison of Philadelphia and of His Wife Sarah Ann Waples. private circulation only. p. 88. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e "ALFRED CRAVEN HARRISON; Wealthy Retired Sugar Dealer of Philadelphia Dies at Age of 81". The New York Times. 31 July 1927. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  3. ^ TIMES, Special to THE NEW YORK (26 August 1939). "W.W. FRAZIER JR., RETIRED EXECUTIVE; Vice President and General Manager of the Franklin Sugar Refinery Co. Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  4. ^ Times, Special to The New York (28 November 1903). "JEWELS WORTH $17,000 STOLEN; William Welsh Harrison's Home, Near Philadelphia, Scene of Robbery". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  5. ^ Times, Special to The New York (5 March 1927). "WILLIAM W . HARRISON DIES.; Retired Sugar Refiner Was Socially Prominent in Philadelphia". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  6. ^ Zerbe, Richard (1969). "The American Sugar Refinery Company, 1887-1914: The Story of a Monopoly". The Journal of Law & Economics. 12 (2): 339–375. doi:10.1086/466672. ISSN 0022-2186. JSTOR 724757. S2CID 154995370.
  7. ^ "MRS. JOHN W. GEARY". The New York Times. 17 December 1952. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  8. ^ "John White Geary". The New York Times. 26 February 1940. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  9. ^ "MRS. JOHN H. PRENTICE". The New York Times. 30 December 1941. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  10. ^ "PRENTICE LEFT $1,875,938.; Bulk of Broker's Estate Goes to Widow and Daughters". The New York Times. 30 November 1926. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  11. ^ TIMES, Special to THE NEW YORK (1 February 1942). "COUNTESS VON HOLSTEIN". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  12. ^ a b "WILLIAM F. HARRISON, NURSERY EXECUTIVE; Head of Philadelphia Concern Ensign in First World War". The New York Times. 27 July 1942. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  13. ^ Times, Special to The New York (21 April 1930). "HARRISON LEFT $6,445,357.; Pennsylvanian's Estate to Pay Federal Tax of $690,875". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
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