History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century/4/George Greene
GEORGE GREENE was a native of England, having been born in Staffordshire on the 15th of April, 1817. His father came to America when the son was but two years old, locating in western New York. George Greene received a good education and studied law in Buffalo. In the spring of 1838 he went to the new Territory of Iowa, first stopping in Davenport, where he made the acquaintance of Professor D. J. Owen, who was engaged in making a geological survey of Iowa and Wisconsin. After working on the survey for six months he taught school at Ivanhoe, Linn County. He was admitted to the bar in 1840 and began to practice law in Marion. The same year he was elected a member of the Council of the Third Legislative Assembly, serving two sessions. In 1845 Mr. Greene removed to Dubuque and soon after became editor of the Miners' Express, which he conducted about three years. In 1847 he was appointed by the Governor one of the Supreme Judges of the State, serving until 1855, with marked ability. During his term he reported the decisions of the court which were published in four volumes and known as “Greene's Reports.” In 1851 Judge Greene removed to Cedar Rapids where he engaged in banking and was one of the most active citizens in promoting manufactures, education and railroad building. He was largely instrumental in securing the construction of the Chicago & Northwestern and the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern railroads through Cedar Rapids. In politics he was a Democrat until 1872, when he became a Republican.