Harris County was created on December 14, 1827, from Troup and Muscogee counties. This was land that was originally distributed by the 1827 Land Lottery and later by the 1832 Land Lottery. The new county was named for Charles Harris, a distinguished Savannah lawyer who died about the time the county was established. He was thought by many to be the best lawyer in Georgia at that time.

The county seat of Harris County is Hamilton, which was incorporated on December 20, 1828. It is located one mile south of Pine Mountain. Hamilton may have been named for Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury in Washington’s cabinet. But another theory has it named for George W. Hamilton, a prominent South Carolinian. Other towns in Harris County are Pine Mountain, Waverly Hall, Shiloh and Ellerslie. Harris County is also home to beautiful Callaway Gardens.