10/18/2026
Tucked away in the Harrison family cemetery, overlooking the James River, rests a little girl named Charlotte Harrison, affectionately known as Lottie.
For generations, her small grave has remained at Berkeley, but somewhere along the way, her story became intertwined with one of the plantation's most famous tragedies. Today, we'd like to share a little about who Lottie really was and clear up a misconception that has followed her for many years.
On July 12, 1745, Benjamin Harrison IV and his daughter Hannah were killed when lightning struck Berkeley Plantation. Some accounts of the tragedy suggest that two daughters perished that day, and Lottie has occasionally been identified as the second child.
But Lottie was not a victim of the lightning strike. In fact, she wouldn't be born until approximately a century later.
So, who was little Lottie?
Charlotte "Lottie" Harrison was born around 1847 to William Allen Harrison II (1820–1892) and Mary Thornton Stockdell Harrison (1821–1893).
Her family had deep roots at Berkeley. Through her father's family, Charlotte was a great-great-granddaughter of Benjamin Harrison V, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and a descendant of the Harrisons who had called Berkeley home for generations.
Her ancestors included Benjamin Harrison IV, who built the Georgian mansion at Berkeley in 1726, and Benjamin Harrison V, whose son William Henry Harrison would become the ninth president of the United States.
Although Charlotte never knew these earlier generations, she was part of the same remarkable family whose history is so closely connected to Berkeley.
**But perhaps one of the most interesting parts of Lottie's story is her final resting place.**
By the time Charlotte died in 1858, Berkeley had already passed out of Harrison ownership. The family had lost the plantation in the 1840s, bringing more than a century of Harrison ownership to an end.
Yet Charlotte was brought to Berkeley to be buried in the family cemetery, among generations of her ancestors.
Her parents lived for decades after her death. William Allen Harrison II died in 1892, and Mary Thornton Stockdell Harrison followed in 1893. Both are associated with burial records in Petersburg, Virginia.
Charlotte, however, remained at Berkeley.
Her beautiful gravestone identifies her as the beloved daughter of W. A. and M. T. Harrison, a touching reminder of the family who mourned her.
**What we don't know is what caused Charlotte's death.**
She was only about eleven years old when she passed away. Despite knowing her identity, her parents, and her place in the Harrison family, we have not established the circumstances that brought her young life to an end.
And while it's tempting to fill those gaps with stories, we believe history deserves something better than speculation.
Lottie was not a second daughter killed in the lightning strike of 1745. She was Charlotte Harrison, a child of the nineteenth century, born into a family whose connection to Berkeley continued long after they no longer owned the property.
So often, the history of Berkeley is told through presidents, patriots, wars, and extraordinary events. But the quieter stories matter, too.
Behind the names carved into these old stones were real people, families who loved one another, celebrated life's joys, and endured its heartbreaks.
More than 165 years after her death, little Lottie still rests among her ancestors overlooking the James River.
And now, perhaps, we can begin remembering her for who she actually was.
**Charlotte "Lottie" Harrison (c. 1847–1858).**
A beloved daughter. A member of the Berkeley Harrison family. And a little girl whose story deserves to be told correctly. ❤️
