President Harrison President William Henry Harrison A native of Virginia, was born into a family that owned slaves back in 1773. His father, Benjamin Harrison V, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. During his teenage years, Harrison briefly attended an academy in Southampton County where he became involved with the antislavery Quakers and Methodists. This did not sit well with his pro-slavery father, who then had him transferred to Philadelphia to study medicine under Dr. Benjamin Rush. However, Harrison did not find an interest in medicine and did not complete his training due to his father's passing shortly after he arrived in Philadelphia in 1791, leaving him without funds for further education. Following the death of his father, 18-year-old Harrison joined the US Army as an ensign. Two years later, in 1793, his mother passed away, and Harrison inherited a portion of the family's estate, including approximately 3,000 acres of land and several slaves. ...