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Family
Marriage: Children:
  1. Samuel "Sammy" or "Milton" Milton Leach: Birth: 11 Jun 1899 in Big Horn, Wyoming. Death: 27 Sep 1972 in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Buried Mansfield AR.

  2. Conrad Allan "Con" Leach: Birth: 21 Apr 1901 in Big Horn, Wyoming.

  3. John Van Leach: Birth: 14 Jul 1903 in Big Horn, Wyoming.

  4. Robert Alec "Bob" Leach: Birth: 11 Mar 1905 in Emmitt, Idaho. Death: 11 Jun 1987 in Arnold Cemetery, Custer, Nebraska

  5. Person Not Viewable

  6. Charles Elmer Leach: Birth: 11 Aug 1912 in Arnold, Nebraska. Death: 18 Oct 1971 in Arnold, Nebreska, Buried Arnold Cemetry

  7. Person Not Viewable


Notes
a. Note:   John R Leach was very fond of his father. When his father left his mother he begged to go with him. Hyram refused and as he forded the Bush Fork creek he waved farewell and told John to "be a good boy".
  In 1878 at the age of 12 John went by wagon with another party to Kansas to live with his father. Hyram took him in and gave him the only teaching he ever recieved. Hyram always pointed out the honest man and urged his son to be an honest man. At the age of 15, John told his father that he want to go back to live with his mother. Hyram found him the way to go. The trip was made by covered wagan with Mr. Haden and family who was making a trip to visit friends near Des Moines, Iowa. They took about two weeks to make the trip. From Des Moines he took his few belongings and hiked the remaining way to Promise City, where his Mom lived.
  The first day after leaving Des Moines he hiked all the way to Chariton in Lucas County, some 40 miles. There he found Charles Simmons and Charles' Mother, who used to live in Promise City, and they were as glad to see him as if he was one of their own family. After spending the night with them, John started out early the next morning for the home of his uncle Robert Leach, who then lived on the Chariton river, three miles north of Promise City. This day's trip was about 24 miles. After a good visit and night's rest, he hurried on for Promise City. Upon his arrival he did not find his mother at home, but she was visiting her sister who lived only a few blocks away.
  After Hyram had left his mother, Miriam married Thomas Cambell, and by this time had a family of three children by her second marriage, Slvia 7, Pearl 5, and Leo 3. His sister Carrie also was at home with her mother. His older brother Charles(Rolly) was working on the railroad helping support the family as they had turned Mr. Campbell off, since he would not support his family. So at the age of 15, John got a job on a farm at $15 per month and helped support his mother and family.
  Not long after this, they decided to trade their house and lot for a team, and harness and wagon, so they could move west. In the spring of 1883 they set out for Nebraska. Along the way they had to stop in Afton, Iowa because the mud was so deep the wagon could go no further. They mad the decision to stay and rent a farm and put in a small crop. Charles went to work as a carpenter and from this point on was pretty much on his own. Charles did help at harvest time with the oats. The corn they planted drowned out and was only good for pasture and horses. They sold a horse for $75 and they traded another horse for a good mule, and thus they had a good mule team with which to head for Nebraska again the next spring. Their oats had washed out and produced very little. They arrived in Polk County sometime in September, where they got work in haying and later in corn picking, making it possible to enjoy the winter.
  In the Spring of 1884 John, Charles, and David (Miriams brother), took the mules and made it to Custer County, Nebraska. While the rest made up houses, John returned to Polk County to get his Mother and the younger children, and by June had returned to Arnold. He then made a garden. The water they used had to be hauled from the Loup River eight miles away. The prairies were full of wild life; deer, antelope, prairie chickens, geese, and ducks so that food was plentiful. Needed cash was had by getting wood from the canyons and hauling it 25 miles to Broken Bow where at times it could be sold for $3 per cord.
  In 1885 John traded for a yoke of cattle and broke prairie, 80 acres of it at $2.50 per acre. Then he trade his yoke of cattle to Harve Ranister for 5 acres of potatoes, 30 acres of oats, one sow and five pigs. In loading the sow Harve hit her with a stick and killed her. John dug the potatoes and hauled them to Boken Bow. After selling half of them at 15 cents per bushel, he stocked the market and had to pile the other half at the edge of town. John didn't think the people of Broken Bow went hungry for potatoes that winter. John stayed with his mother and helped support the family for 10 years. Trips to Loup river for water, covering a distance of approximately 20 miles were the occasion for meeting people of the surrounding area who also used the river as a water source. On occasion, a William Lawyer who lived about 10 miles from the river in the opposite direction was there at the same time. William had come with his family from Seymour County, Iowa in 1885. Common interest led to the families friendship. Here it was he found his wife, Alice, who was a school teacher. It became a usual trip for John to drive his mules over to the Lawyers and take Alice to a neighborhood social and dance.
  In 1890 John and 3 friends arranged a trip west across the Rocky Mountains on the Union Pacific Railroad. They got only a one-way pass so John hiked his way back. It was a 3 month journey. He arrived back in Arnold in early 1891.
  In 1893 John was Baptized in the Loup River by Rev. Mr Gilson, pastor of the Methodist Espiscopal Church.
  1894 was a drought, the corn withered away from dry hot winds. John took his team and went back to Iowa where he got work with a threshing crew run by Mr. Baily. John slept where he could and wore the same clothes all week. On Saturday nights Mr. Baily would take him home and give him a bath and clean his clothes. After 3 months, John returned to Nebraska. He thought at times of going west to the Dakotas, but was told it was a worthless place and it would be better to stay out of it.
  On Dec 5, 1894 he married Alice Lawyer in Arnold. In early 1895 John and Alice, along with Chet Lexie Wilson went by covered wagon for a trip into the Bighorn Basin of Wyoming. Upon their return, John and Alice decided to search for a livelihood in the west taking their wagon and team journey back toward Wyoming. John would get work wherever he was able to find a good paying job. It was not long until they settled on a ranch at bighorn, Wyoming, where John had steady work for about eight years with some English ranchers and finally he became foreman on one of the ranches there. Here near Bighorn three boys were born; Samuel, Conrad, and John.
  In 1904 John took his family in a covered wagon and crossed the Rockies to the west of Sheridan, driving through Yellowstone Park. It was there a bear robbed their grub-box of most of their food supply. When they got as far as Emmet, Idaho John got a job as a ditch rider on an irrigation project where he worked for about 2 years. There two more children were born; Robert, and Miriam. John then went to Spokane, Wa. and learned the barber's trade and began barbering at Emmet. However, when he saw how difficult it would be to raise a family of boys in town, he decided to take his family back to the ranch life in Wyoming, and so in 1907 he returned to Bighorn where he again found employment with the Moncrefes. Although John gave up the barber trade he kept his barber tools, finding them very handy in keeping his children trimmed. He was very happy with the work at Bighorn and had hopes of getting in with the big ranchers there.
  In 1910, John went back to Arnold for a visit with his mother. His half brother Leo, was a semi-invalid and wished to move to Arnold with his mother if John would come back to live at Arnold and take over his place. John decided to return to Bighorn and get his family and move back to Arnold. Early 1911 with his family he boarded the Burlington train at Sheridan and landed at Merna, Nebraska. There the were met by Leo, and his Neighbor John Long, who drove them back to Arnold. The old sod house that they built in 1884 still stood and provided a crude but comfortable home for his family. The corn crop that year was good and a man by the Name of Mulligan came to help pick. in 1912 another son was born, Charles. The crops were better and thing were going well. However, Leo and Miriam decided they wanted to move back to the sod house. This meant John and family had to move. In March of 1913 John moved to Fred Hayes place SW of Arnold. Here there was a nice frame house, but the barns and other buildings were very poor, being mostly just dugouts. From this time on for the next few years every March they would have to move to find a new place to rent. They always stayed within a 7 mile radius. The family attended the Methodist Church at Arnold and made this their center for buying their families needs. In April, 1914 William was born.
  1917 John purchased a quarter section of land in the Rolling Sandy country about 5 miles SE of Arnold. He he built a house and barn. In 1918 he visited some friends in the northwest part of South Dakota. He saw the rolling grassy hills, and thought that this was the place for him. He arranged to sell his land there in Arnold, and to buy new land near Lantry South Dakota. In the spring of 1919 he sold what remaining items he wanted and loaded the rest of his possessions and hopped the train to South Dakota. In addition to the Land he had purchased in Lantry, he was able to lease some land adjoining it. He bought more milk cows and started a new life. However, in 1922 the rainfall decreased each year. The land and pasture was unable to produce enough to care for his family. In the summer of 1925 john went with some friends to Montana, where he found what look to him as promising country. When he returned home and talked with Alice and the family about moving, he was discouraged, and so he stayed in Lantry until 1929. By this time Con and Samuel were married. Jack(John) was away at school, Miriam also was married. Bob who had always assumed much of the responsibility for managing the place, took over while Charles and Bill were still attending a local school.
  In 1929 at the age of 64 John returned to live in Arnold. He traveled and wrote of his trips. He enjoyed good health.


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