Samuel Harrison House

Infobox_nrhp | name =Samuel Harrison House
nrhp_type =


caption =
location= Pittsfield, Massachusetts
lat_degrees = 42
lat_minutes = 27
lat_seconds = 7.86
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 73
long_minutes = 15
long_seconds = 5.51
long_direction = W
locmapin = Massachusetts
area =
built =1850
architect=
architecture= Greek Revival
added = March 22, 2006
governing_body = State
refnum=06000147cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2008-04-15|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

Samuel Harrison House is a historic house at 82 Third Street in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.

The house was built in 1850 by the Rev. Samuel Harrison of Pittsfield and added to the National Historic Register in 2006. Rev. Samuel Harrison was a 19th century African American born into slavery in 1818. By 1821, he and his mother were given their freedom. At an early age, he had the desire to become a minister. He sought out an education at the Peterboro Manual Labor school in Peterboro, NY. This school was closed shortly after his arrival. He then traveled to Hudson, Ohio where he attended and graduated from the Preparatory School at Western Reserve College (now Western Reserve Academy). In the late 1840's, Samuel Harrison moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts and became the first minister of the Second Congregational Church in Pittsfield. [ [http://harrison.lsw.com/page.php?PageID=228&PageName=Home Samuel Harrison House website (accessed August 20, 2008)] ]

In 1862, Rev. Harrison retires from the pulpit and begins working for the National Freedman's Relief Society during the Civil War. In July 1863, the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Regiment spearheaded the assault on Fort Wagner in Charleston, South Carolina. The regiment suffered heavy losses. Massachusetts Governor John A. Andrew sent Rev. Harrison to South Carolina to express the sympathies of the commonwealth to the men of the 54th. Later that year, Rev. Harrison would be commission as Chaplain and mustered into the 54th. The following year 1864, Rev. Harrison was honorably dischared for health reason. He would work for the National Freedman's Relief Society until the war was over. [ [http://harrison.lsw.com/page.php?PageID=228&PageName=Home Samuel Harrison House website (accessed August 20, 2008)] ]

In the late 1860's, Rev. Harrison filled the pulpit in various places around New England. But by 1872, Rev. Harrison had returned to his home in Pittsfield and return as pastor of the Second Congregational Church. Rev. Harrison would serve in this capacity until his death in 1900. During this time, Rev. Harrison would have 2 sermons published, one in 1874 and the other in 1877. In 1899, he was commissioned to write his autobiography. [ [http://harrison.lsw.com/page.php?PageID=228&PageName=Home Samuel Harrison House website (accessed August 20, 2008)] ]

In 2004, the Samuel Harrison Society was formed to save Rev. Samuel Harrison's house from demolition believing that it had historic value. Now with Rev. Harrison's house on the Registry of Historic Places, the Samuel Harrison Society is committed to restoring and preserving the home. [ [http://harrison.lsw.com/page.php?PageID=228&PageName=Home Samuel Harrison House website (accessed August 20, 2008)] ]

References