History of Fayette County Kentucky United States of America

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Biographies:

George Washington Dunlap, representative, was born in Fayette county, Ky., Feb. 22, 1813. He was graduated at Transylvania university in arts in 1834, and in law in 1837. He practised in Lancaster, Ky.; was a commissioner of the circuit court, 1843-74; a representative in the state legislature in 1853; a Union delegate to the border-state convention of 1861; a representative in the 37th congress, 1861-63, and a Democratic presidential elector in 1865. He died in Lancaster, Ky., June 6, 1880.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Carter Henry Harrison, representative, was born at Elk Hill, Fayette county, Ky., Feb. 15, 1825; son of Carter Henry and Caroline Evalind (Russell) Harrison; grandson of Robert Carter and Ann (Cabell) Harrison, and of Col. William and Nancy (Price) Russell; and a descendant on his father's side from Benjamin Harrison who emigrated from England to Virginia about 1620, and on his mother's side from William Russell, who came from England to Jamestown, Va., with Sir Alexander Spotswood in 1710. Mr. Harrison was prepared for college under Dr. Lewis Marshall, brother of Chief-Justice John Marshall, entered the sophomore class at Yale in 1843 and was graduated in 1845. He then engaged in farming in Fayette county, Ky., travelled in the Orient with Bayard Taylor, spent two years in Germany and France, and in 1855 was graduated from the Transylvania university law school, Lexington, Ky., being admitted to the bar in the same year. He was married in 1855 to Sophonisba Preston of Henderson, Ky., who died in 1876. In 1882 he was married in London to Marguerite E., daughter of Marcus A. Stearns of Chicago. In 1857 he removed to Chicago, where he practised law and engaged in the real estate business. He was elected commissioner of Cook county in 1871; was defeated for congress in 1872, and was a Democratic representative in the 44th and 45th congresses, 1875-79. In 1879 he was elected mayor of Chicago and was also elected in 1881, 1883, 1885 and 1893. In 1884 he was Democratic candidate for governor of Illinois and in 1891 unsuccessfully contested the mayoralty nomination with De Witt C. Cregier; making the race independently he came within two thousand votes of election. In 1887-88 made a trip around the world, writing descriptive letters to the Chicago papers. These letters were afterward published under the title "A Race with the Sun." In November, 1891, he purchased the Chicago Times newspaper which was managed by his two sons, Carter Henry and William Preston, until 1894. On the evening of his death a stranger, pleading urgent business, was admitted to Mayor Harrison's house. Mr. Harrison left the dining-room to meet the stranger who fired at him with a revolver, inflicting five wounds. The assassin afterward gave himself up and was convicted of murder. Mr. Harrison died in Chicago, Ill., Oct. 28, 1893.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

History of Fayette County Kentucky

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