Townsend Harris
Born	1804 Washington County, New York, USA
Died	1878

Townsend Harris (1804–1878) was a successful New York City merchant and minor politician, and the first United States Consul General to Japan. He negotiated the "Harris Treaty" between the U.S. and Japan. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1225x2000, 647 KB)TITLE: Hon. ... 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Washington County is a county located in the state of New York. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... 1878 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1878 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... See also: consulate (disambiguation). ... The Treaty of Peace and Commerce between the United States and Japan was signed July 29, 1858. ...

Harris was born in Sandy Hill, in Washington County in upstate New York. He moved early to New York City, where he became a successful merchant and importer from China. Washington County is a county located in the state of New York. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ...

In 1846 Harris joined the New York City Board of Education, serving as its president from 1846-48. He founded the Free Academy of the City of New York, which later became the City College of New York, to provide education to the city's working people. A city high school bearing Harris's name, Townsend Harris High School, soon emerged as a separate entity out of the Free Academy's secondary-level curriculum; the school survived until 1942 (when Fiorello LaGuardia supposedly closed it because of budget constraints), and it was re-created in 1984 as a public magnet school for the humanities and continues today as one of the best high schools in the nation. The City College of The City University of New York (known more commonly as the City College of New York or simply City College) is a senior college of the City University of New York, in New York City. ... Japanese high school students in uniform High school, or Secondary school, is the last segment of compulsory education in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan (Republic of China) (only junior high school) and the United States. ... Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (December 11, 1882–September 20, 1947) was the Mayor of New York from 1934 to 1945. ...

In 1855 President Franklin Pierce named Harris Consul General to Japan, and Harris became on his arrival in 1856 the first American diplomat to reside in Japan. After two years of negotiation marked by deadlock and cultural clashes, he successfully negotiated the "Treaty of Peace and Commerce," or the Harris Treaty, in 1858, securing trade between the U.S. and Japan and paving the way for greater Western influence in Japan's economy and politics. He returned to the U.S. in 1861. Order: 14th President Vice President: William R. King Term of office: March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857 Preceded by: Millard Fillmore Succeeded by: James Buchanan Date of birth: November 23, 1804 Place of birth: Hillsborough, New Hampshire Date of death: October 8, 1869 Place of death: Concord, New Hampshire First... The Treaty of Peace and Commerce between the United States and Japan was signed July 29, 1858. ... 1858 is a common year starting on Friday. ...

Harris was portrayed by John Wayne in the 1958 movie The Barbarian and the Geisha, directed by John Huston. Its plot, dealing with a love affair between Harris and a Japanese woman, is substantially fictional. John Wayne (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), nicknamed Duke, was an Irish-American film actor whose career spanned the evolutionary phase of American cinema, appearing in silent movies and talkies alike. ... Statue of John Huston, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico John Huston (August 5, 1906 - August 28, 1987) was an American film director. ...

External links

• Harris biography from Consul General of Japan in New York
• Selected comments from Harris's conversation with Bakufu Grand Councillor Hotta Masayoshi on December 12, 1857