Henry Rinaldo Porter
Encyclopedia
Henry Rinaldo Porter was an Acting Assistant Surgeon in the 7th U.S. Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
Porter was born in New York Mills, New York
. He graduated Georgetown University
School of Medicine in 1872 as a doctor. Four years later, he became a Contract Surgeon with the U.S. Army at Fort Abraham Lincoln
during the Black Hills War.
Commanding officer Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
assigned Dr. Porter to Frederick Benteen
's battalion during the march to the Little Bighorn River
in June 1876. Porter was the only one of the 7th Cavalry's three surgeons available to the survivors on Reno Hill for the two days they were besieged. (Dr. George Edwin Lord
had been killed with Custer's Battalion and Dr. James Madison DeWolf
was killed during the climb up Reno Hill.)
Dr. Porter left his contract service in September 1876. He testified at the Reno Court of Inquiry in 1879.
Porter died in Agra, India, where he had gone on a trip with his wife. There is currently a street in New York Mills, NY named in his honor on which his home and the home he built for his mother-in-law still stand.
Porter was born in New York Mills, New York
New York Mills, New York
New York Mills is a village in Oneida County, New York, USA. The population was 3,327 at the 2010 census.The Village of New York Mills is partly in the Town of Whitestown and partly in the Town of New Hartford. It is a western suburb of the City of Utica.-History:There were three mills which gave...
. He graduated Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
School of Medicine in 1872 as a doctor. Four years later, he became a Contract Surgeon with the U.S. Army at Fort Abraham Lincoln
Fort Abraham Lincoln
Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park is located seven miles south of Mandan, North Dakota. The park is home to On-A-Slant Indian Village, the blockhouses and the Custer house...
during the Black Hills War.
Commanding officer Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
assigned Dr. Porter to Frederick Benteen
Frederick Benteen
Frederick William Benteen was a military officer during the American Civil War and then during the Black Hills War against the Lakota and Northern Cheyenne. He is notable for being in command of a battalion of the 7th U. S...
's battalion during the march to the Little Bighorn River
Little Bighorn River
The Little Bighorn River is a tributary of the Bighorn River in the United States in the states of Wyoming and Montana. The Battle of the Little Bighorn was fought on its banks in 1876, as well as the Battle of Crow Agency in 1887....
in June 1876. Porter was the only one of the 7th Cavalry's three surgeons available to the survivors on Reno Hill for the two days they were besieged. (Dr. George Edwin Lord
George Edwin Lord
George Edwin Lord was a U.S. Army Assistant Surgeon in the 7th Cavalry who was killed in the Battle of the Little Big Horn in Montana Territory during the Black Hills War....
had been killed with Custer's Battalion and Dr. James Madison DeWolf
James Madison DeWolf
Dr. James Madison DeWolf was an acting assistant surgeon in the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment who was killed in the Battle of the Little Big Horn....
was killed during the climb up Reno Hill.)
Dr. Porter left his contract service in September 1876. He testified at the Reno Court of Inquiry in 1879.
Porter died in Agra, India, where he had gone on a trip with his wife. There is currently a street in New York Mills, NY named in his honor on which his home and the home he built for his mother-in-law still stand.