Or was he born 30 July 1756 in Somers twp., Tolland Co., CT? Or was he born 30 Jul 1751?
He served in the Revolutionary Army and applied for a pension in September 1832 (Abstracts of Rev. War Pension Files, p. 2057). He served in Capt. Nathan Howle's Co., Col. John Worcester's Regt. in 1777 against Gen. Burgoyne's invasion of Bennington. (Ref. Bradford County Patriots and Pioneers, p. 428, also p. 75.)
Not long after 1800, he removed with his family to Springfield, Bradford Co., PA, along with Abel Leonard.
Ezekiel Leonard, was born July 30, 1751 at Springfield, Mass. He served as a private in Capt. Nathan Rowley's company under Col. John Worcester, alarm service, from Sept. 21, 1777, to Oct. 17, 1777 in Northern expedition against Burgoyne's invasion. He was with General Ethan Allen in his attack on Ft. Ticonderoga. He became one of the pioneers of Bradford county, and the advent of the Leonards into Springfield is thus described by a member of the family:
"In June 1803, Ezekiel Leonard and Austin Leonard of Springfield, Massachusetts, having been interviewed by Michael Thorp, a land agent, came to this locality to establish a new home. At Troy they met Joseph Barber, a hunter and surveyor, who lived near Dillin's mill. Barber took them into the valley at the western slope of Mt. Pisgah and assisted them in selecting a tract of 1,000 acres which they purchased. They agreed with Nathaniel Allen, living at East Troy, to build them two log houses and to have them by the 1st of November, 1803 for the sum of $75. The Leonards arrived with their families at that time. Mr. Allen had not built the houses but had a vacant log house into which the Leonards moved. Austin and Ezekiel built a hut by the side of a large hemlock log a few rods from the Leona M. E. cemetery, where they lived during the working days of the week the remainder of the year 1803 and up to the summer of 1804. On Saturday nights they went down the creek to Allen's settlement and stayed with their families until Monday morning. Then each with his week's rations, his axe and rifle, repaired to their hut in the valley, afterwards known as 'Leonard's Hollow' and now as Leona. During the winter they felled the timber on about 40 acres. They burned this fallow in May and planted corn amongst the logs, using hand-spikes for corn planters. They had a wonderful growth of corn, estimated at 40 bushels per acre. After their corn was planted, they built two log houses on the western bank of the creek and moved thereto. The roofs of these houses were made of hemlock bark and the floor of mother earth. Before cold weather, they made floors from ash lumber, which they split and hewed to proper thickness. The news of their great corn crop brought additional settlers from Massachusetts. Austin built a saw mill in 1808 on lands now of Austin Leonard and thus added the luxury of board floors and roofs to their mansion in the forests."
Ezekiel Leonard had married Rhoda _____; she was born March 23, 1764 at Symmers, Conn., died December 27, 1842; he died suddenly August 30, 1834; both are buried in the Leona M. E. cemetery. Their children were:
Abi (Abigail), born August 11, 1783, married Abel, son of Austin Leonard, died January 24, 1864.
Laura, born June 16, 1785, married Joel Calkins, died February 27, 1843.
Ezekiel, born October 23, 1787, married Huldah Stever, died July 25, 1869.
Nathaniel, born December 18, 1790, died January 27, 1827.
Lyman, born June 3, 1793, married Abby, daughter of Moses Calkins, joined the Mormons and removed to Salt Lake City where he died March 18, 1877.
Eber, born July 27, 1795, married Sally Wilber, died October 27, 1871.
Frederick, born July 13, 1799, married Mary B. Rose, died February 4, 1882.
Albert, born July 24, 1801, married Cynthia Sargeant, died May 1, 1882.
Alfred, born September 21, 1805, married Hannah Mudge, died March 26, 1876.
See Bradford County Patriots and Pioneers, p. 428, also p. 75. Ezekiel Leonard had person sources.
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