Cornelia Harrison was the daughter of John and Mary Daniel Sevier. The Sevier family was steeped in American history. Her great grandfather incurred the wrath of the British Crown when he and others settled outside allowed boundaries in an area they named The Wautauga Settlement. After the American Revolution, the general, whose brilliant strategy helped defeat the Loyalist forces at the Battle of King's Mountain in upper South Carolina on October 7, 1780, was elected the first Governor of Tennessee.

In 1832, Cornelia Sevier married James Smithart (Smithhart) in Warren County, Mississippi. He died in 1843 at the age of 28, leaving the 26 year old widow with five children:

Sarah Ann (1836 - 1923) married Elijah Smith (Memorial# 79390353)
Clinton Alexander
James Williamson (1837 - 1923)
(Memorial# 71920506)
Francis Levinia married Arthur Bailey Gibson
Julia Ann married Walter Mahoney

Months later, Widow Smithart married Jacob Harrison. As was she, he was from a family deeply entrenched in American history. His mother, Eleanor Shannon Harrison, and his maternal grandparents, Owen and Margaret Montgomery Shannon, were members of Steven Austin's Old 300.

Owen Shannon, his father, Thomas, and his brother each had been granted 287 acres of land for their service in the American Revolution. The Daughters of the American Revolution designated Thomas Shannon DAR Ancestor Number A102839. (Reference DAR GRS at dar.org.)

Jacob and Cornelia Harrison added five children to the family:

Margaret (1846 - 1937) married John L. Moore
(Memorial# 35099726)
William (1848 - 1917) married Sally Blakemore
(Memorial# 9381734)
Mary Addie (1850 - 1885) married 1) R L Edwards and 2) James J. Standridge
(Memorial# 50045406)
John (1852 - 1915) married Sarah Reed
(Memorial# 71918382)
Virginia married 1) Artley Riddle and 2) Davis Standridge
(Memorial# 92972123)