Morrocroft

In 1905, Morrison made two big changes. He moved his law practice to Charlotte and married Lottie May Tomlinson (1878-1919) of Durham. The mother of Aphelia Lawrence Morrison, Mrs. Morrison was active in many local civic affairs before her death in 1919. The following year, Morrison defeated O. Max Gardner, then Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina, in the Democratic primary for Governor of North Carolina. Morrison went to win the office, serving from 1921 to 1925. He is remembered best as the “Good Roads Governor,” bringing the state “out of the mud” by securing funds for a massive road building program. He also worked to upgrade the state’s medical facilities and educational system, from local primary schools to universities.  

In 1924, while still in office, Morrison married Sara Eckerd Watts of Durham, the millionairess widow of noted financier and philanthropist George W. Watts. At the end of Morrison's governorship, the Morrisons moved to Charlotte to establish Morrocroft, an elegant residence and experimental farm of approximately 3,000 acres just outside of the city. Completed in 1927, the Tudor Revival-style mansion and attendant outbuildings were designed by Harrie Thomas Lindeberg (1879-1959), a prominent New York architect who specialized in the design of baronial country houses. Known locally as the “Esquire of Morrocroft,” Morrison worked to make his estate a model farm reflecting the most advanced scientific agriculture principles as a means for encouraging North Carolina farmers to do likewise. He raised chickens, turkeys, and hogs, established one of the finest herds of Jersey cattle in the United States, and cultivated large fields of grain, vegetables, and fruits. 

In December 1930, then Governor O. Max Gardner appointed Morrison to the U.S. Senate to serve out the term of the recently deceased Senator Lee S. Overman. In 1932, however, Morrison was unsuccessful in his reelection campaign. In 1942, Morrison was elected to and served a single term in the U.S. House of Representatives. A 1944 campaign to return to the U.S. Senate proved unsuccessful, marking his final run for public office. Predeceased by his second wife, Morrison died in 1953 while visiting Canada with his grandson. Morrocroft was bequeathed to Mrs. Morrison’s stepdaughter Angelia Lawrence Morrison Harris. Angelia and husband James J. Harris disposed of most of the Morrocroft farm property over the subsequent years.