Robert Harpur (January 25, 1731 – April 15, 1825) was an Irish-American teacher, politician, pioneer, and landowner.
He was a graduate of the University of Glasgow and taught in Ireland for 7 years before coming to the Colony of New York in 1760.
In the spring of 1795 Robert Harpur, with his 2nd wife Myra and family, moved west along the upper Susquehanna River.
Additionally, Harpur College, the arts and sciences component, and the oldest part, of present-day Binghamton University, was also named for him.
[3]: 1–2 [example needed] An earlier theory was that Surveyor General Simeon De Witt assigned these classical names.