Georgia Harris was born on 29 July 1905 in Lancaster County, South Carolina, not far from the Catawba Indian Reservation. Her father, James Harris was a county-paid ferryman on the Catawba River, and his ferry provided the only way to cross the river from York to Lancaster County. Georgia attended the Catawba School on the Reservation, and began learning pottery at the age of nine from her mother, Margaret Harris, and her grandmother, Martha Jane Harris. Pottery trade grew in importance to the family when James Harris died in 1912, and Georgia, her mother, grandmother, sister, and herself all worked clay and sold pottery. At age 21, Georgia married fellow tribal member, William Douglas Harris and reared 2 sons. Georgia continued to make pottery to sell while raising her family, and as the tribe's economic conditions improved, Georgia was able to make pottery simply out of joy. In 1952, a vessel by Georgia won first prize at the York County Fair. Beginning in 1975 Georgia began teaching pottery to other Catawba citizens, and, in 1977, Georgia joined fellow Catawba artists, including Frances Wade and Doris Blue to form a pottery association to promote the Catawba's traditional potter's craft among modern Catawba. In 1979, Georgia exhibited and demonstrated at the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery. In 1997, Georgia was named a National Heritage Fellow by the National Endowment of the Arts. Unfortunately, she passed away on 30 January 1997, before the fellowship could be awarded.
