Henry Slade was born in England in about 1640. He emigrated to Virginia and later to North Carolina by 1668. A mariner, Slade operated a boat service which imported new settlers into North Carolina. He established himself in Bath County by 1699. There, he helped broker an agreement between the colony and the Bay River Indians and later submitted a petition against the Mattamuskeet. He later resided in Hyde Precinct, where he died sometime after March 1721.