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at the University of Pennsylvania. Then, at the age of 18, he joined the U.S. army. Four years later, he married Anna Tuthill Symmes. Some historians believe they eloped because her father (who had served on New Jersey%u2019s Supreme Court) disapproved of Harrison. He believed a military man had no stable future, but over time, Judge Symmes came to appreciate his son-in-law. While in the military, Harrison quickly advanced to the rank of captain. However, he decided to resign in 1798 and seek a post in the new Northwest Territory. Pulling all the strings he could, he asked his family and friends (including Thomas Pickering, U.S. Secretary of State), to petition President John Adams on his behalf. Their entreaties were successful, and Harrison was appointed Territorial Secretary, then was elected as the Northwest Territory%u2019s first delegate to the U.S. Congress.Seeing that Harrison was a serious and dedicated legislator, Adams appointed him to be the Indiana Territory%u2019s first governor on January 10, 1801, even though he was young, just shy of his 28th birthday. It didn%u2019t take long for him to settle his family in Vincennes, by which time he and Anna had produced three children. They were joined by William Jr., John Scott, Benjamin, Mary, and Carter, who were born after the move to the Indiana Territory. Years later, when they all relocated to Ohio, two more children arrived, for a total of ten.Two of the new governor%u2019s most important duties were to gain title to as much Indiana land as possible, and to increase the white population. So, very early in his tenure, Harrison negotiated the purchase of 2,900,000 acres from several Indian tribes in southern Indiana. Unfortunately, the legendary Shawnee Chief Tecumseh claimed the purchase was unfair. As a result, over an eightday period in 1810, he and 100 braves met with Harrison in Vincennes in hopes of working out a mutually acceptable solution. But they could not resolve their differences. Consequently, Tecumseh raised an army, equipped it with guns from the British, and the Battle of Tippecanoe was waged the next year. Harrison considered himself the victor and the conflict eventually helped to propel him into the presidency. However, modern historians say the battle was actually a disaster for both sides. The best that could be said was that it was a draw. Eventually, Harrison oversaw the transfer of more than 60-million acres from Native Americans to the Federal government. Then, after more than ten years as Governor of the Indiana Territory, he resigned and left the area to fight in the War of 1812.As a Virginian by birth, Harrison held many Southern values%u2014including being pro-slavery. In fact, after his mother died, he inherited several slaves from her estate, and reportedly brought seven of them to the Indiana Territory with him. This was despite the fact that the Northwest Ordinance contained a clause stating, %u201cthere shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory.%u201d