Henry was the founder of the Pierrepoint family dynasty. He entered the profession of executioner at the age of 27 after boldly writing letters to the Home Secretary expressing his ambition to become a hangman. He had been inspired after reading about the appointment of another executioner, James Berry. For Henry, the position of executioner presented the opportunity for travel, something that the young Pierrepoint desired from an early age.
After a period of disappointment and misunderstanding he eventually received training at Newgate Prison in London and entered the profession in 1901. He first served as assistant to the then Official Executioner, James Billington, and carried on as principal, taking part in over one hundred executions.
Henry was responsible for the execution of the notorious babyfarmers, Sach and Walters, as well as the Stratton brothers and the martyr Madar Lal Dhingra. He retired in 1910 and later published his memoirs in 'The Thomson's Weekly News'.
Like his son, Albert Henry diligently kept an Execution Diary. He, too, scribed the usual details of the victim (name, age, height and weight) but, in addition, gave a brief description of the condition of the condemned prisoner's neck. When Albert started keeping a diary, he dispensed with this detail as he thought it distasteful.
Henry Pierrepoint died in 1922, ten years before Albert embarked upon the same career path. Little did he know that his son would become the most prolific hangman in British history.
