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Henry Greene was the son of John and Lavinia (Knight) Greene, natives of Rhode Island, the father having been born March, 15th, 1767, and the mother December 8th, 1770. Henry the eldest son was born in Coventry, Rhode Island, December, 15th, 1789. His parents moved with him and two younger children in the spring of 1795, into Herkimer County, New York, and settled on a farm in the south western part of Fairfield, where they continued to reside during their lives, and where they reared a numerous family. At that time this section of the country was an unbroken wilderness, not one rood of ground upon which they went to reside having been cleared. Here he with the rest of the family commenced the toils incident to frontier life, with but few facilities for acquiring an education. Henry however managed to attend an academy, which had been established at Fairfield, and subsequently the medical college at that place, where he graduated in 1814. He immediately obtained a position as Assistant Surgeon in the army, and repaired to Black Rock, and Sacketts Harbor, to report for duty.
His regiment was the 25th Regiment of Regulars. He crossed into Canada, and his first patient was Lieut. Hale, an old schoolmate who had received a severe wound, the ball entering his shoulder, passing through one lung, and making its exit on the opposite side of the body, and whom he had the satisfaction of seeing ultimately recover. Dr. Greene remained with the army about three months, marching with it from Buffalo to Sacketts Harbor, and seeing considerable hard service.
After the declaration of peace he went to New York, and spent several months in the hospital. In 1816, he removed to Esperance, in Schoharie county, where he remained in the practice of his profession until his removal to Albany in 1828. Upon the organization of the Albany Medical College, in 1839, Dr. Greene was appointed to the chair of obstetrics, but lectured only for a single term. He continued in the practice of his profession until his health failed; he became subject to melancholy, and died on the 12th of May, 1844, of paralysis, at the age of 54 years. Dr. Greene married Miss. Julia Isham of Esperance, by whom he had two sons. The eldest studied medicine and became a druggist, but is now deceased. The younger son studied law, and subsequently divinity. He became a clergyman of the Episcopal church and was settled in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he died in 1858. Mrs. Greene, died at Pittsborough, in January, 1864.
Dr. Greene was a man of great purity of character, andenjoyed a large practice.