Primary Name: Harris, William John, Jr.
Filed as: harris_william_j_jr
Also known as: William John Harris Jr.; William J. Harris Jr.; William Harris
Occupation / Association: Guide; Sign Painter; Political Cartoonist
Born: March 29, 1884, Juneau, Alaska
Died:
Parents: Richard "Dick" Tighe Harris; Kitty Harris
Spouse:
Children:
Associated places: Juneau, Alaska; Telephone Hill; Chemawa Indian School, Oregon
Property / Address: Harris Family Home, 219 Second Street, Telephone Hill, Juneau, Alaska
Keywords: William John Harris Jr, William Harris Jr, Richard Dick Harris family, Kitty Harris, Telephone Hill residents, Alaska Native rights cartoonist, Chemawa Indian School students
Biography
William John Harris, Junior was born on March 29, 1884, the oldest surviving son of Kitty Harris and Richard "Dick" Tighe Harris. He was named after Dick Harris's nephew, William John Harris, Senior. An older brother with the same name died in infancy.
His younger brother, Richard Tighe Harris, Jr., also survived. A younger sister, Mary Kelchine Harris, died at 11 months old.
The family lived at 219 Second Street in the Telephone Hill Historic Neighborhood. Upon his father's death, William inherited this house.
He attended the Native school in Juneau. In the mid-1890’s, he began studying at the Indian School at Chemawa, Oregon. The first correspondence in the Alaska Consortium Library's collection between the boys and their father begins in late 1897.
William Harris was a guide and sign painter in Juneau. He inherited the house after his father's death in 1907.
Although 1901 tax records show “lots and a building” and site improvements valued at $1,000, the Edward Bayless House, located on Lot 2 at 211 Dixon Street, is visible in an 1885 photograph. It is recorded that in 1912, Claire Bayless and Edward Bayless purchased Lot 1 and built the Edward Bayless House.
William was a nationally published political cartoonist whose caricature drawings demonstrated involvement in early Alaska Native rights efforts. While at school, he drew cartoons for the Salem Capital Journal, including a lampoon which helped cover his school expenses while he studied caricature.
He lived in Juneau most of his life and raised a large family.
Sources
Alaska Consortium Library – Harris Family Papers
Telephone Hill Historic Site and Structures Survey
Tags: William John Harris Jr, Harris William John Jr, Kitty Harris, Richard Dick Harris, Telephone Hill residents, Alaska Native rights advocates, Juneau pioneers