Harris, a native of New Jersey, became a close friend and patron of John James Audubon. He supported some of his expeditions financially and joined him in two western trips, one in 1837 to Texas and the other in 1843 up the Missouri River. The two copies of the original journal in this collection give Harris' day by day account of this second trip. One is accompanied by a foreword by J. Fletcher Street. The original journal, and Harris' diary are in the Department of Archives and History of the State of Alabama, at Montgomery. Included in the collection are letters regarding its provenance.