Harrison Gray Otis
United States Senator fromMassachusetts
In office March 4, 1817 – May 30, 1822
Preceded by	Joseph Bradley Varnum
Succeeded by	James Lloyd
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's8th district
In office March 4, 1797 – March 3, 1801
Preceded by	Fisher Ames
Succeeded by	William Eustis
3rdMayor of Boston, Massachusetts
In office January 5, 1829[1] – January 2, 1832[2]
Preceded by	Josiah Quincy III
Succeeded by	Charles Wells
Delegate from Massachusetts to theHartford Convention
In office 1814–1815
President of the Massachusetts Senate
In office 1805 – 1806 1808–1811
United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts
In office 1796–1796
Preceded by	Christopher Gore
Succeeded by	John Davis
Personal details
Born	(1765-10-08)October 8, 1765 Boston,Massachusetts Bay Colony,British America
Died	October 28, 1848(1848-10-28) (aged 83) Boston, Massachusetts, US
Political party	Federalist
Spouse	Sally Foster Otis
Children	11
Relatives	Otis family
Education	Boston Latin School
Alma mater	Harvard University
Profession	Law

Harrison Gray Otis (October 8, 1765 – October 28, 1848), was a businessman, lawyer, and politician, becoming one of the most important leaders of the United States' first political party, theFederalists. He was a member of theOtis family.

One of the wealthiest men of Boston, Otis was reportedly worth at least US$800,000 in 1846, equivalent to $24,900,000 in 2024.

Otis was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on October 8, 1765, to Elizabeth (née Gray) andSamuel Allyne Otis. His uncle was American colonial leader and activistJames Otis, and his father was active in early American politics as a member ofMassachusetts state house of representatives, delegate to Massachusetts state constitutional convention, andContinental Congress delegate from Massachusetts. His aunt wasMercy Otis Warren, a well-known poet.

Otis himself graduated fromBoston Latin School in 1773 andHarvard University in 1783, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1786 when he commenced practice in Boston.

In 1794 he was elected to theMassachusetts legislature, and in 1796 was appointed by PresidentGeorge Washington to be U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts. In 1797, he was electedU.S. Representative from Massachusetts as a Federalist and a strong advocate for centralized government, in which office he served until 1801. He was appointed United States U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts by PresidentJohn Adams (1801–1802), and again served in the state legislature from 1802 to 1817, serving several terms asPresident of the state senate (1805–1806, 1808–1811). He was elected a Fellow of theAmerican Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1804.^[3] In subsequent years, Otis was electedU.S. Senator from Massachusetts (1817–1822), and thenMayor of Boston (1829–1831).

In 1814, in the midst of his political career, he was also named a judge of the court of common pleas (1814–1818), and played a leading role as delegate to the controversialHartford Convention in whichNew England's secession from the United States was discussed. Overall, it led to the demise of the Federalists, and Otis's political ambitions suffered. Otis subsequently defended the convention in hisLetters Developing the Character and Views of the Hartford Convention (1820) and hisLetters in Defence of the Hartford Convention (1824).

Otis was involved in a major financial scandal during the site selection for theMassachusetts State House. Boston was determined to remain the state capitol, and appointed Otis to a town committee to purchase land and donate it to the state. He did so, and also quietly arranged his own private purchase of 18.5 acres (75,000 m²) adjoining from the agent ofJohn Singleton Copley, then living in England. After a decade of legal arguments, the sale was upheld, and Otis and theMount Vernon Proprietors developed a large part ofBeacon Hill.

Otis was an overseer ofHarvard University from 1810 to 1823, and a fellow of the university from 1823 to 1825, as well as one of the original incorporators of theBoston Bank. In 1812, Otis also became a founding member of theAmerican Antiquarian Society.^[4]

Harrison Gray Otis, 1809 byGilbert Stuart

Harrison Gray Otis, 1809 byGilbert Stuart

On May 31, 1790, Otis marriedSally Foster, the daughter of prominent merchant William Foster. During the course of his lifetime, he built not one, but three, grand houses in quick succession (seeHarrison Gray Otis House), all designed by noted architectCharles Bulfinch. Together, Harrison and Sally were the parents of eleven children, including:^[5]

• Elizabeth Gray Otis (1791–1824), who marriedGeorge Williams Lyman (1786–1880), a director of theBoston and Lowell Railroad.^[5]
• Harrison Gray Otis, Jr. (1792–1827), who marriedEliza Henderson Boardman (1796–1873).^[5]
• Sally Ann Otis (1793–1819), who married Israel Thorndike, Jr. (1785–1867), son of merchantIsrael Thorndike.^[5]
• Sophia Harrison Otis (1799–1874), who married Andrew Ritchie Jr. (1782–1862).^[5]
• James William Otis (1800–1869), who married Martha C. Church (1807–1888) in 1825.^[5]
• William Foster Otis (1801–1858), who married Emily Marshall (1807–1836).^[5]

He died in Boston on October 28, 1848, and is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery,Cambridge, Massachusetts.^[5]

Through his son William, he was the grandfather of Emily Marshall Otis (1832–1906), who married historian and educatorSamuel Eliot.^[6] Through his son James, he was the grandfather ofJames Otis, a New York State Senator and society leader.^[7]

A descendant wasJ. Wadsworth Ritchie (1861–1924), son of Montgomery Harrison Ritchie, who died in theAmerican Civil War, and the first husband ofCornelia Wadsworth Ritchie Adair.^[8]

• 
  1st Harrison Gray Otis House on Cambridge Street]]
• 
  2nd Harrison Gray Otis House,Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts.
• 
  3rd Harrison Gray Otis House on Beacon Street]]
• 
  Harrison Gray Otis' grave atMount Auburn Cemetery

• Harrison Gray Otis House
• Timeline of Boston, 1790s-1830s
• Otis, Iowa
• 1822 Boston mayoral election
• 1828 Boston mayoral election
• 1829 Boston mayoral election
• 1830 Boston mayoral election

Wikimedia Commons has media related toHarrison Gray Otis.

• United States Congress."Harrison Gray Otis (id: O000127)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

• 1765 births
• 1848 deaths
• 19th-century mayors of places in Massachusetts
• People from colonial Boston
• Federalist Party United States senators
• Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
• Harvard University alumni
• Massachusetts state senators
• Presidents of the Massachusetts Senate
• Mayors of Boston
• Otis family
• United States attorneys for the District of Massachusetts
• United States senators from Massachusetts
• Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery
• Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts
• 19th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court
• 19th-century United States senators
• 18th-century United States representatives

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