Eighth Generation

4290. Jesse Bradford LEONARD³⁴⁵⁶ was born on 4 August 1865 in Maine. He died on 27 February 1934 at the age of 68 in Brockton, Plymouth Co., MA.²⁴²¹ In the 1900 Census, Jesse was a farmer living in the first ward of Brockton. They had three servants.

He may have been born in Canton, Oxford Co., Maine -- he and Chester are listed in the Canton Genealogy Project.

Jesse Bradford LEONARD and Alice Lillian SNOW were married on 27 April 1884 in Brockton, Plymouth Co., MA.²⁴²¹ Alice Lillian SNOW, daughter of Dennis SNOW and Charlotte Reed BROWN, was born on 3 February 1866 in Brockton, Plymouth Co., MA. She died in 1959 at the age of 93. She was known as Doe. She left a letter with memories in "the book." It read in part, "Brockton used to be called West Shores in the past. I lived in a part of North Bridgewater. I remember the big September gale that struck here when I was 3 years old (1869). It did a great deal of damage. I remember it took down the Porter Church spire, a tall one then. It blew down a large willow tree in our yard that had a swing on it for my sister and I... I first went to school in the little school house on the hill side of the Pearl Street. When I was about eight years old, it was moved to where the Hancock School now stands. I graduated from grammar school when I was fourteen... I graduated from high school in the old Browne Church, which used to stand on the hill at the corder of Pheasant Street and Main Street, a land mark for years... The high school was where the cityhall now is. There was many wooden buildings on Main Street then and trees on the side of the streets. Warren Ave. was called Pond St. and quite a large pond was at the corner of Warren Ave. and West Elm St. I was a farmer's daughter and a farmer's wife. So we had a busy life, but there was many pleasant things about a farm.

There is a pond on our farm, it used to be called Dana's pond after my father. Now it's called Leonard's pond. I learned to skate on that pond, my children and grandchildren and great grandchildren have all skated there. One of the pleasant things about our farm life is the fragrance of new mown hay. I always liked riding on the loads and driving the tedder and the horse rake. The animals are interesting, so many are so knowing. We have had so manyhorses, and some were so bright. One would come to the door for his lump of sugar, and bow and shake hands. Several knew all the stops on the milk route, one always turned around at the last customer on the street while the driver was delivering the milk...

I belonged for many years to the Harrison Lodge of Good Temples, cousin Mary's father and mother spent many hours helping to get up entertainments for the meetings. I falso enjoying helping and so did Caribou of this page. I belonged to the W.S.C.S. of the Pearl St. Church and was president for nine years to the former Ladies Aid...

I see there will be no Brockton Fair this year. I have always attended eachfair since it first started, except year before last, when I was in Philadelphia. We used to go in a covered wagon and take a water pail full of lunch and tie Dorbin to the railing around the track as near the same place every year where our friends and relatives found us and often ate with us. Father brought home many blue ribbons for his cows. I liked it best when there was a cattle show; now it is more like a carnival...

I have only four children, but eighteen grandchildren and five great grandchildren and do enjoy them, especially the babies. I had one son in the last war (World War I). I have two grandsons in the present war (World War II). One has been across a year this January. One expects to go now he has his wings. One of my granddaughter's husband is in the Coast Guard and another is going in the Navy and one's in the SeaBees... All we can do is pray for them and for a speedy ending with a fair settlement for all nations."

She was 74 when she wrote most of this and the very last in 1951 when she was 85. She died at the age of 93 in 1959.

She was a descendant of William Snow, born in 1624 in Sturtle Parish, Dorchester, England of NIcholas Snow and Mary Walker and who was brought to this country from England by Richard Derby to whom he was apprenticed. In 1638 he was one of the early settlers of Bridgewater. In 1657 he married Rebecca Brown, daughter of Peter Brown (Browne) who came on the Mayflower.

Jesse Bradford LEONARD and Alice Lillian SNOW had the following children: