Biography

Mr. Harris was a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who lived in Utah in his later years. In 1896, he attended a festival in Utah that celebrated its citizens over seventy years of age. As an elderly Black man, his attendance was noted in The Broad Ax, a local Black-owned newspaper, along with that of other elderly Black members of his faith: Isaac Manning, Jane James, Wesley Taylor, and a Mr. Knox. Unfortunately, the news report does not offer any other identifying information for Knox, Taylor, or Harris, other than the fact that they were Black and Latter-day Saints.[1]

The Broad Ax, a Black-owned newspaper that was then printed in Utah, described the men in the group as “very old gentlemen,” and “faithful members of the Mormon Church.” Throughout the celebration, they reportedly intermingled with the senior citizens of other races “as brothers and sisters.”[2] Given that Old Folks’ Day was a celebration primarily for Utahns over the age of seventy years, presumably Mr. Harris was a Utah resident, and potentially well over seventy years based upon him being described as “very old.” He may have been born around 1825 or earlier.

From 1875 to 1970, Utah celebrated Old Folks’ Day, an annual celebration for Utah residents who were seventy years and older. These celebrants would spend the day enjoying meals and entertainment provided by young volunteers, and riding in carriages, trains, and boats. The day would end with recognition of some of the most remarkable elderly people in attendance: the oldest man and woman, furthest travelled, oldest man and woman who were completely toothless, oldest woman never married, mother of the most children, longest member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and oldest members of other Christian denominations.

Mr. Harris’s attendance at the festival indicates that he was a resident of Utah at the time. The 1900 census records several Black men with the surname Harris residing in Utah, although none were older than forty. One man, John J. Harris, born in 1818, fits the age of Mr. Harris, but he was white.[3] No elderly Black men with the last name of Harris lived in Utah according to the 1880 census. The loss of the 1890 census only adds to the challenge. An eighty-five-year-old Black man named Thomas B. Harris died in 1917 in Salt Lake City, but his death certificate indicates that he had lived in the state for only six years before his death.[4] His birthplace was listed as Virginia, his occupation as a miner, and his relationship status as single. No other indication of or information about his family is available. If his residency dates are accurate, that would eliminate Thomas B. Harris as a possible match for the Mr. Harris at the Old Folks’ Day celebration, as he would not have been in the state in 1896. No other census, death, or newspaper records shed additional light on the identity of Mr. Harris at this time. Until further evidence emerges, Century of Black Mormons recognizes a Mr. Harris as a “faithful” Black Latter-day Saint living in Utah in 1896.

By Danielle M. (Elder) Blaylock

[1] “Old Folks’ Day,” The Broad Ax (Salt Lake City, Utah), 25 July 1896, 1.

[2] “Old Folks’ Day,” The Broad Ax (Salt Lake City, Utah), 25 July 1896, 1.

[3] United States, 1900 Census, Utah, Davis County, Centerville.

[4] Utah, State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Death Certificate, File No. 1492, Registered No. 158, Thomas B. Harris, Utah Division of Archives and Records Services, Salt Lake City, Utah.

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