William Harris (1610-1681) was one of the four men with Roger Williams at Seekonk in the Plymouth Colony during the winter of 1636. He then joined Williams and several families in establishing the settlement of Providence Plantations which became a part of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. He became one of the 12 original proprietors of Providence, and one of the 12 original members of the first Baptist Church in America, and he appears prominently in the early records of the settlement.