Representative Harris Brown McDowell

Harris Brown McDowell Sr. (September 1859 – March 11, 1927) was an American veterinarian, farmer, and Democratic politician from Middletown, Delaware, who served in the Delaware Senate and founded a political family that would span three generations of public service. Born in September 1859, he spent most of his life in and around Middletown in New Castle County, an area that would remain the geographic and political center of his career. Trained as a veterinarian at a time when Delaware’s economy was heavily agricultural, he built a professional life closely tied to the needs of local farmers and rural communities, which in turn informed his later political work.

McDowell established himself as a respected veterinarian and community leader in Middletown, combining his professional practice with farming and local civic engagement. His work brought him into regular contact with residents across New Castle County’s 7th district, giving him a detailed understanding of the region’s economic conditions and public concerns. This close connection to his community helped propel him into elective office as a representative of the Democratic Party, which was then rebuilding its strength in Delaware in the early twentieth century.

As a member of the Delaware Senate, McDowell represented New Castle County’s 7th district, which included Middletown. In that capacity he participated in state-level legislative deliberations during a period of social and economic transition, as Delaware confronted issues related to modernization, transportation, agriculture, and public health. Although detailed records of his individual legislative initiatives are limited, his background as a veterinarian and farmer positioned him as an advocate for agricultural interests and rural communities. He contributed to the work of the General Assembly at a time when state legislatures were assuming a larger role in regulating commerce, infrastructure, and public welfare.

McDowell’s most enduring legacy lay in the political tradition he established within his family. His son, Harris Brown McDowell Jr., followed him into public life, winning election to the Delaware Senate in 1942. Harris Jr. served one term in the state senate before moving into statewide office as Secretary of State of Delaware, and later advanced to national office as a member of the United States House of Representatives. A Democrat like his father, Harris Brown McDowell Jr. served as a Representative from Delaware in the United States Congress from 1955 to 1967, completing five terms in office. During those years in the House of Representatives, he participated in the legislative process at the federal level and represented the interests of Delawareans in a period marked by the Cold War, the early civil rights movement, and significant economic and social change.

The family’s political involvement extended to a third generation through McDowell’s grandson, Harris Brown McDowell III. Elected to the Delaware Senate in 1976, Harris III built one of the longest legislative careers in state history. A member of the Democratic Party like his father and grandfather, he remained in the Delaware Senate for 44 years, ultimately retiring as the longest-serving legislator in the history of the Delaware General Assembly. His tenure spanned debates over energy policy, environmental regulation, education, and fiscal management, further cementing the McDowell name in Delaware’s political history.

Harris Brown McDowell Sr. spent his later years in Middletown, remaining closely associated with the community he had long served professionally and politically. He died on March 11, 1927, leaving behind not only a record of service in the Delaware Senate but also a multigenerational political legacy. Through the subsequent careers of his son in the state senate, as Secretary of State of Delaware, and as a United States Representative, and of his grandson in the Delaware Senate, McDowell’s influence extended well beyond his own lifetime and helped shape the course of Delaware’s public life throughout much of the twentieth century.