William Pope Harrison, D.D., L.D.D. (September 3, 1830-February 7, 1895) was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Methodist

Methodist Episcopal Church, South

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, or Methodist Episcopal Church South, was the so-called "Southern Methodist Church" resulting from the split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church which had been brewing over several years until it came out into the open at a conference...

 minister and theologian, and was the 48th Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives

Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives

The election of William Linn as Chaplain of the House on May 1, 1789, continued the tradition established by the Continental Congresses of each day's proceedings opening with a prayer by a chaplain. The early Chaplains alternated duties with their Senate counterparts on a weekly basis, covering the...

. He was an author of books on Methodist theology, most notably The Gospel among the Slaves, the first comprehensive accounting of the religious beliefs of African American

African American

African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

 slaves in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Harrison was born in Savannah, Georgia

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

, and attended the preparatory school

University-preparatory school

A university-preparatory school or college-preparatory school is a secondary school, usually private, designed to prepare students for a college or university education...

 of Emory College

Emory University

Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...

. In 1850, he became an itinerant minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South

Methodist Episcopal Church, South

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, or Methodist Episcopal Church South, was the so-called "Southern Methodist Church" resulting from the split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church which had been brewing over several years until it came out into the open at a conference...

. In 1859, he was appointed to the faculty of the East Alabama Male College

Auburn University

Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...

 in Auburn, Alabama

Auburn, Alabama

Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama with a 2010 population of 53,380. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area...

 as Adjunct Professor of Languages, and from 1861 through 1862 was president of the Auburn Female College, today Auburn High School. He returned to Emory, receiving the Doctor of Divinity

Doctor of Divinity

Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....

 degree in 1866. Later that year, Harrison became pastor of the First Methodist Church in Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

, the first of four terms as pastor there, the last of which ended in 1877.

Harrison was elected Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives

Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives

The election of William Linn as Chaplain of the House on May 1, 1789, continued the tradition established by the Continental Congresses of each day's proceedings opening with a prayer by a chaplain. The early Chaplains alternated duties with their Senate counterparts on a weekly basis, covering the...

 on December 3, 1877. He served in that capacity for the 45th

45th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:-Leadership:-Senate:*President: William A. Wheeler *President pro tempore: Thomas W. Ferry -House of Representatives:*Speaker: Samuel J. Randall -Members:This list is arranged by chamber, then by state...

 and 46th United States Congress

46th United States Congress

The Forty-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1879 to March 4, 1881, during the last two years of...

, before resigning in 1881. In 1882, Harrison was elected book editor of the Methodist Episcopal, South publishing house, a position he held for the remainder of his life. Harrison was a delegate to the First (1881) and Second (1891) World Methodist Council

World Methodist Council

The World Methodist Council, founded in 1881, is an association of churches in the Methodist tradition which comprises most of the world's Wesleyan denominations.- Extension and organization:...

s, and was Secretary of the Methodist General Conference

General conference (United Methodist Church)

The General Conference of The United Methodist Church is the denomination's top legislative body for all matters affecting the United Methodist connection...

 in 1890. Harrison died on February 7, 1895, in Columbus, Georgia

Columbus, Georgia

Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...

.