Leonard Ashley

As printed in 1910

LEONARD F. ASHLEY (1860), who owns and conducts a farm just south of the corporate limits of the village of Jackson, has made his home on that farm since he was thirteen years of age. His parents were Leonard and Mary Jane (Wilbur) Ashley, both natives of Pennsylvania and both deceased. In the year 1853 these parents started from their Pennsylvania home for Illinois, where they intended to make their future home, a homestead claim having been previously entered through a brother, Frank Ashley. While traveling through Michigan, enroute to their new home, Mr. Ashley died. Mrs. Ashley continued the journey and made her home on the homestead, upon which her brother-in-law was living.

On this homestead, near the town of Peoria, Illinois, on June 19, 1853, Leonard Ashley, of this sketch, was born. When he was six months old his mother returned to her old home in Bradford county, Pennsylvania, and there Leonard lived until the fall of 1866. On the second day of October, 1866, he and his mother arrived in Jackson county to make their future home, an uncle of our subject, Welch Ashley, having preceded them six months. For a couple of years he attended school — the first season in the school taught by Mrs. B. H. Johnson at the home of her husband, a log building on the east side of the river.

In 1868 Leonard began working on the farm of his step-father, Isaac Wheeler, his mother having remarried. This farm is the one now owned by Mr. Ashley and is on the southeast quarter of section 26, Des Moines township. When Mr. Wheeler became too feeble to care for the farm Leonard took the management and conducted it on shares. Before he had yet reached his majority Leonard purchased a forty acre tract of the 240 acres of the original farm, and upon the death of his mother he became the owner of the rest of the home place, except 80 acres which had been sold.

Mr. Ashley was married in Jackson January 13, 1879, to Mary Thomas who, with one exception, is the oldest living settler of the county. She is the daughter of the late Joseph and Jane Thomas, who became residents of the county in 1858. Mrs. Ashley was born in Montague, Sussex county, New Jersey. To Mr. and Mrs. Ashley have been bom the following children: Louis W., Leslie N., Solon, who died at the ae of nineteen years; Henry, Allison, Mary, Arthur, who died at the age of eleven months.

As printed in An illustrated history of Jackson County, Minnesota (1910). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.