1818-1893
Adoniram Judson Greeley
Physician/Philanthropist NH/RI
The Greeley Public Library in Hudson, New Hampshire, reports the story of Adoniram Judson “A.J.” Greeley, MD, and we are grateful for their permission to recount his story through this edited version of “Remember Hudson NH When.”
A native of Hudson, Adoniram Judson Greeley, was the oldest son of Joanna (Merrill) and Reuben Greeley. Reuben owned a farm in Hudson Center and was a prominent leader in town serving as postmaster, town clerk, selectman, representative to the legislature, and as an early member of the First Baptist Church.
AJ’s mother, Joanna, was born in Sedgwick, Maine where her father, Rev. Daniel Merrill, was the pastor of the local church. Rev. Merrill served in the Revolution and graduated from Dartmouth College. He first served as a Congregational pastor but converted to Baptist and became a leader in the Baptist movement in New England. Rev. Merrill and his family moved to Hudson in 1814 when he accepted the call to be the pastor of the Baptist Church here in Hudson. Reuben Greeley, a prominent young man, and Joanna Merrill, the pastor’s daughter, were married in November 1817.
In September of the following year (1818) their first child was born and named Adoniram Judson Greeley in honor of the first protestant missionary sent from North America to serve in Burma. He was a New Englander and a Baptist, so it was natural that Reuben and Joanna named their first son in his honor.
AJ’s early education was from his parents and a local one room district school. His high school education was at the Academy and Theological Institution in New Hampton, NH. Following high school, he attended Brown University in Rhode Island graduating in 1841. He then did medical studies at Harvard and received his MD in 1845. He practiced medicine in Searsmount, ME for about 10 years moving to Clinton, MA for a short period and then settled in or near Providence, RI area where he practiced nearly 40 years until his sudden and unexpected death in 1893.
In addition to medicine, he had an advocation for antiquity. He traveled to various countries and was particularly knowledgeable about Europe and Egypt. He was known to have a sizeable estate which included his personal library of nearly 3000 books. In his will he bequeathed some 500 volumes to the town of Hudson for a library.
Dr. A. J. Greeley died unexpectedly at the age of 74. He was found unconscious in his office and passed away the next morning at a local hospital. A local police officer was doing rounds and noticed a trail of blood outside in his doorway. He followed the bloody trail to the doctor’s office where he was found unconscious. At first his passing was considered an accident, suffering head injuries as the result of a fall. Dr. Greeley did leave a blood-stained note instructing whoever found it to get in touch with his brother, H.C. Greeley, the executor of his will. Following his death and an examination of his body the medical examiner declared his injuries were not consistent with an accident and his death was considered a homicide, the theory being he was attacked during a robbery as he was known to carry money on his person. It is unclear if anyone was prosecuted for this crime.
The rest is history. His brother was the executor of his estate. Through AJ’s generosity and the generosity of his heirs nearly 2000 volumes of his books came to Hudson over the next few months to form the nucleus of the Greeley Public Library. A.J. himself was returned to his hometown where he was laid to rest in the family lot in Westview Cemetery along with his parents and four of his siblings.[1]
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[1] Adoniram Judson Greeley, https://rememberhudsonnhwhen.com/2019/07/27/dr-adoniram-judson-greeley/