Charles Custis Harrison (May 3, 1844 – February 12, 1929) was an American businessman who owned several sugar refineries in Philadelphia from 1863 to 1892, and served as Provost of the University of Pennsylvania from 1894 to 1910.

[13] The raw sugar was sourced from Cuba, Java, Louisiana, as well as brokers in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, London and Germany.

[15] Sugar from Louisiana at that time would have been a result of the labor of freedmen and women living in only marginally better conditions than when enslaved pre-emancipation.

[17] Sugar from a Dutch-Occupied Java would have been grown by native Javanese who were forced into harsh conditions and low paying labor.

His years as Provost, 1894 to 1910,[19] were a time of expansive growth for the University of Pennsylvania, especially in the number of buildings added to the campus.

[20] Using his extensive personal contacts from his business and political associates, Harrison raised funds (making large contributions himself) for dormitories as well as Houston Hall, the University Museum, the Medical Laboratory, the Law, Engineering, and Dental School buildings from the wealthy of Philadelphia society.