Henry Sparrow was born on the 9th of October, 1765 to James W. Sparrow and Mary White. He fought in the Revolutionary War, and was later granted a pension for his actions. He later went on to serve in the 20th Regiment of the Virginia Militia during the War of 1812.

Henry Sparrow married Lucy Shipley, daughter of Robert Shipley Jr. and Sarah Dorsey, on the 3rd of April, 1791. Lucy Shipley already had a seven or eight year old daughter from a previous relationship, whose name was Nancy Hanks, the future mother of President Abraham Lincoln. Henry and Lucy had eight children together, and he died in Mercer County, Kentucky on September 17th, 1840 at the age of 74.