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[center]Dr. Henry C. Shaw[/center]

Archetype: Doctor

Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian (Scotch-Irish)

Background: Although an adept doctor who has saved countless lives, Henry is considered the black sheep of his family. In 1842, The Shaws immigrated from The United Kingdom to North Carolina. Years after their arrival, Michelle Shaw died giving birth to her second son, Henry. Growing up, this was the cause for a great deal of spite from his father and older brother, who looked at him with disdain for the most part. Although his father was only bitter about the death of his wife, Henry's older brother Duncan held much more resentment. Four years older, Duncan was everything Henry was not. Where Henry was weak and frail, Duncan was tall and strong. Where Henry was awkward and ungainly, Duncan was clever and winsome. Above all other things, Duncan was entirely different from Henry in a single attribute -- Henry was kind, and Duncan was cruel.
 
It was this kindness that would lead Henry to develop an interest in medicine, and this cruelty that would lead Duncan to breaking his younger brother's leg as a child. This injury healed improperly, leaving Henry bound to a bed for a year, and bound to a cane for the rest of his life. Although Henry's kindness allowed him to forgive his brother, he would not soon forget the extent of Duncan's tortures. Whereas Henry enjoyed nursing plants and animals to health, Duncan reveled in the opposite, and was known for wanton cruelty to animals, as well as Henry, classmates, and most who were unwise enough to learn his name. His father largely ignored this, as Duncan was otherwise normal. 

Although his family did not own slaves, most others did, with some families occasionally hiring Duncan a few cents when their slaves "Acted out of place". Henry discovered this at the age of nine, when he witnessed the brutality inflicted by his brother firsthand -- A slave boy named Leroy had dared stand against Duncan during a beating more savage than he had ever given Henry. His eyes were swollen shut, his skin opened from being dragged on the dirt and gravel, and one of his fingers had been bitten off by Duncan. Although Leroy's owners had stopped Duncan just short of killing him, to avoid losing money in Leroy's death, he was still in a critical condition, and word spread around their town that Duncan had nearly killed a slave. Henry took it upon himself to nurse Leroy to health, in what was seen as upkeep of equipment for the slave's owner, but was nearly a duty to Henry. Although Henry was thanked and paid for saving the life of a slave by his owner, he knew the thanks were for every wrong reason. Knowing that Henry had taken a liking to Leroy, Duncan wore Leroy's finger bone on a necklace as a reminder.

Henry practiced and honed his medical skills in his hometown, becoming a curator of syrups and serums, and frequently selling homemade potions as cures for garden variety ailments, such as headaches and insomnia. In medical school, Henry was considered no different than any Catholic Irishman by many members of the Gentry, and so he learned to slowly distrust those who said they were superior to him. His grades were fairly mediocre, scoring the average for every test, but with one distinction made. Henry had the best bedside manner in his class. Nearly every patient he had treated, no matter how unexceptional his skill was, preferred him over any other doctor. Henry's kindness proved a selling point, in that he could treat an ailment [i]and[/i] the patient. 

After graduating medical school, Henry returned home to make a stark discovery. Leroy had long since been killed by Duncan in Henry's absence, while Duncan himself had gone on to found a group known as "The Young Knights of the Confederacy". Disgusted by his brother's actions, and by the pride his own hometown took in them, Henry left town, vowing to never return. Eventually, he found himself in the town of Richmond. Unable to open up an office with his own funds, his practice moved underground -- Most of his operations were done in private, usually repairing teeth broken in fights, removing bullets from wounds, and occasionally, the infected wounds of escaped slaves. Soon, the name of a group that would take in people like him was brought into his practice -- The Railsplitters. Likeminded men and women that wanted to dismantle slavery.
And so, The Good Doctor found a place to call his office, and a place to call home.

Skills: Medicine, Surgery, & Dentistry. His job is healing, after all, and he is good at his job.

Talent: Diplomacy. Henry's kindness extends to almost all of his mannerisms. He can form genuine bonds with ease, and can empathize with almost anybody. He is one of the few Railsplitters who lists "People Person" under his list of skills.

Flaw: Henry is a pacifist, partly due to his own Hippocratic Oath, and party due to his kindheartedness. Henry has had to loosen his morals a fair deal as a Railsplitter, slowly drifting from "First, Do No Harm" to "Try Not To Kill". The few times Henry has had his life threatened, and taken a life in turn, he hesitated greatly, and was plagued with guilt afterwards. Although he has no qualms about fighting or letting others kill, unless he absolutely has to, Henry will refuse to take a life.

Motivation: Henry isn't completely sure whatever his motivation is, sometimes questioning what brought him to his place in life. Some would say his jealousy of his father's adoration for his brother drives him to be a hero, others would say an unresolved hatred causes him to rebel against all his brother stands for. Whatever the true reason is, it can be summed up with the one constant in his personality, his kindness. Above all else, Henry is good, and slavery is evil. With a line in the sand drawn, Henry has decided his side.