Thomas Spencer Harris (1836 or 1831 – 1893) was an early California newspaperman. Born in 1836[1] (or 1831) in Ohio, Harris probably hailed from Cleveland. He traveled to the Pacific Coast in 1859, and three years later, joined the 2nd Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry.[2] From 1874 through 1883, he worked as an editor and newspaper publisher in California mining camps, and founded ten newspapers, including the Panamint News (November 26, 1874),[3] the first in the Death Valley area.[4]