Harris Hicks was born in Granville County in about 1759. Prior to the American Revolution, Hicks was bound as an apprentice to Henry Melton to learn blacksmithing and when the war broke out, Hicks ran away to become a private in the Granville County Regiment of the North Carolina Militia. He served several tours both for himself and as a substitute throughout 1778 to 1780, including one in a light horse regiment. During one such tour he was wounded in the leg from a wagon horse's kick, which continued to trouble him for much of his adult life. In 1781 he served an additional tour as a blacksmith in a public factory in Harrisburg, Granville County. Sometime around 1830 he had a medical attack, likely a stroke, which made him lose the ability to use one side of his body or speak. He died in Granville County in August 1836.