Third Generation

18. Brigadier General Hiram LEONARD was born on 24 April 1809 in Burlington, Chittenden Co.,, VT. He was educated at West Point Academy, West Point, NY. He earned a law degree and worked as Clerk of Court in Rochester before enlisting in the Army.

He enlisted in the US Army 2 Mar 1849 and remained in the Army until after the Civil War. He originally was in the paymaster's office. He died on 21 December 1883 at the age of 74 in San Francisco, CA. He was buried in Presidio Park, San Francisco, CA. Or was he born in Chili, Monroe Co., NY? (newspaper obituary)

He was appointed by President Polk as paymaster with the rank of lieutenant 3 Mar 1847 and was one of the last official acts of President Polk. He was with General Scott all through the Mexican War and at its close was stationed at Tampa Bay, FL, where he remained for 4 years. He was then stationed in CA for 8 years. Next came 6 years in WV. Then he returned to CA as Senior Deputy Paymaster General, including all troops west of the Mississippi. He served as Paymaster General of the US Army and as Commander-in-Chief of the Western Army during the Civil War. He retired with the rank of Brigadier General and continued to live in San Francisco. (Rochester Union and Advertiser, 18 Aug 1884)

He inadvertantly struck a blow for women's rights. His wife apparently got their estate in financial difficulty while he was away in the Civil War. He sought to reverse some of the transactions in a court case that went to the California Supreme Court. In those days, it was generally the rule that the husband's permission was necessary for a wife to transact business, so he sued "because she didn't have the right to transact." But the Justices ruled against him, reasoning that he wouldn't have complained if she'd made a profit. Per Elizabeth Paullin Terrell.

Brigadier General Hiram LEONARD and Sidonie were married about 1860. Sidonie was born in 1843 in prob. Dijon, France. After Hiram's death, she returned to France, living in Paris until her death.

Brigadier General Hiram LEONARD and Sidonie had the following children:

38	i.	Selden LEONARD¹ was born about 1861. In 1881, Sidonie and Selden were living in London. Sidonie appears in passport applications to be living in London at least twice before Hiram's death in 1883. According to family, Hiram's marriage to a much younger woman was considered scandalous.
39	ii.	Marie Sidonie LEONARD was born about 1863 in NY, OR, or CA.