Harris Wilcox Harris Wilcox, 91, of Churchville, prominent area businessman, internationally renowned auctioneer and Realtor, Chairman of the Board of Harris Wilcox, Inc., generous benefactor of charitable, civic and youth organizations and a lifelong devotee to American Agriculture, died on July 17, 2010, with his loving wife, Fern, by his side. Harris was a great-great-grandson of a pioneer family who moved to Riga, Monroe County in 1810 from East Guilford, Conn. They came with two ox teams and a determination to make their home in the wilderness west of the Genesee. Harris lived with his wife Fern, in one of the original homesteads built in 1828.

Harris was born in Bergen March 30, 1919, to George C. Wilcox, a leading real estate attorney with the Harris, Beach & Wilcox Firm in Rochester and Maretta Clough Wilcox who later owned a very successful Doll Museum in Bergen. After graduating from Bergen High School in 1939, Harris went on to study agricultural sciences at Cornell University. While at Cornell, Harris excelled in the Horse Judging Program, was Chancellor of the Alpha Zeta Fraternity, and President of the Roundup Club, Ho-Nun-De-Kah and Phi Kappa Phi. His professors enabled Harris to travel to all of the Auctions in which Cornell cattle were consigned and he had the opportunity to hear the best Auctioneers in the business. He also conducted auctions at Cornell for the Ag Department. During the winter break of his senior year, Harris was selected by the Dean of the Agricultural College to replace Professor Hinman, who had died, and teach all of Dr. Hinman’s Agricultural Science Classes scheduled for the spring semester. Harris not only carried his own full-time academic course load and graduated second in his class, but the students he taught attained high grades on their final agricultural science exams as well.

Upon graduating from Cornell in 1943, Harris, who elected to not proceed to Purdue to earn a master’s degree so that he could teach full-time as a professor at Cornell, returned to Bergen to pursue his life long ambition of owning and operating his own farm. But, becoming an auctioneer was his birthright. Harris’ grandfather George Wilcox was a highly regarded local auctioneer who sold horses at the popular Bantles’ Auction Barn in Rochester. Unfortunately, Harris never got to hear his grandfather ‘‘cry’’ a sale, as he died before Harris was born. However, Harris was encouraged by local farmers who had, and soon, in the summer of 1943, his auction career began with three auctions his first week. He opened his office in the Bergen village house where his great-great-grandfather raised his eight children.

Harris recognized the need for a full-service auction company and incorporated his business, Harris Wilcox, Inc. in 1952. Harris auctioned registered Holstein cattle in 34 states and 3 provinces of Canada. Cattle of all breeds which Harris auctioned often were exported to nations all over the world. He was on the auction staff when 10 legitimate world record prices were set. He sold at the dispersals of many of the most famous Holstein dairy farms in North America. Harris also sold numerous Morgan and Appaloosa horse sales of national interest.

In the early 1980s Harris predicted the changes in the auction trends of the purebred livestock industry and prepared his corporation for the transition by fully developing their potential with real estate, antique, estate, farm and business liquidation auctions. He has generously donated his time and the efforts of his staff to sell charity and fund raising auctions for churches, hospitals, wild life conservation organizations, civic organizations, for families with critically ill members, for foundations, schools, universities, youth groups of every sort and many other worthy causes.

He has been a strong supporter of FFA and 4-H clubs in Western New York, and for more than 50 consecutive years sold the Erie County 4-H Livestock auction and for many consecutive years sold the 4- H Livestock Auctions for both Niagara and Livingston County programs to help youth complete their livestock projects.

Taught to drive horses by an old Civil War veteran when Harris was 4 years old, Harris became a ‘‘collector’’ of good horses. In his carriage driving hobby, Harris trained two pair of Morgan Horses and both pair won international championship titles.

Harris was a highly sought-after public speaker, he was often called upon by businesses, civic and trade organizations, diverse agricultural and livestock interest organizations and associations and financial institutions to serve as the key note speaker at their annual banquets or at meetings where the attendees needed motivation and an inspirational message. He was an enthusiastic lay speaker of the Presbyterian faith, but was welcomed in churches of all denominations. His messages were universally well received. In one 12- year period, Harris spoke in excess of 1,200 times in more than 500 churches in 12 states. He continued to speak at churches until he was about 87 years old. For 20 years he taught an Adult Bible Study program at the Bergen Presbyterian Church.

As an astute businessman with a remarkable ability to assess risk, project future trade and profit patterns, and a gifted negotiator, Harris quickly rose in authority in every organization which he joined and on every Board of Directors to which he was elected. Some of the offices he held were with: Fleet Bank of New York, Erie & Niagara Insurance Company, Liberty Pumps, Genesee Valley Presbyterian Nursing Center (Kirkhaven), Mount Rest Cemetery Association, Genesee Memorial Hospital, Byron-Bergen Central School, Rochester Area Foundation, Pittsford Carriage Association, Roberts Wesleyan College, Rochester Presbyterian Home, Moderator of the Genesee Valley Presbytery, founding member and first President of the NYS Auctioneers Association, and became the youngest president of the National Auctioneers Association. He was elected to the Hall of Fame on both the state and national levels as an auctioneer.

Since 1997, Harris and Fern have been trail riding, three seasons out of the year, on Tennessee Walking Horses at favorite locations in New York and Pennsylvania. Winters have often been spent in Florida where Harris quickly adopted a Baptist Church in Astor, as his winter church. This year marked the 67th consecutive year of the Harris Wilcox Auction family as there were four generations involved in the business. Craig Wilcox, president and CEO, along with his sons Brett and James Wilcox and Brett's children Brette-Ashley and Cash Wilcox all work in various divisions of the business. Counting Harris’ grandfather George H. Wilcox, the Wilcox name has been synonymous with the auction business for five generations.

Predeceased in death by his first wife Wanda Almquist Wilcox, brother Douglas and his sister Greta (Paul) Leighton, Harris is survived by his wife of 15 years, Fern Acomb-Wilcox; a son, Craig (Marge) Wilcox of Riga; daughter, Lenore (Tristan) Hohler of Vero Beach, Fla.; five grandchildren, Brett and James Wilcox, of Bergen, Beth (James) Salvatore, Courtney Minor and Alison Hohler of Vero Beach, Fla.; stepgrandchildren, Kevin Heinzerling and Penne Vincent; great- grandchildren, long time business associates and many friends and admirers.

Calling hours will be from 3 to 8 pm. on Sunday, August 8, 2010 at the Bergen Presbyterian Church, 38 S. Lake Ave., Bergen. Services will be held on Monday, August 9, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. in the Hale Auditorium at the Cultural Life Center at Roberts Wesleyan College, 2301 West Side Drive, Rochester, NY 14624. Memorials to Fern Wilcox for use in the Harris Wilcox Memorial Scholarship.