These are photos of the Leonard cemetery which I have visited several times with my son Joseph. Joseph and his brother, Bob have also been there without me. It is located on land now owned by Cowlee lumber company and they have a GPS location on the cemetery so as not to harm it. Joe has also put a makeshift barrier around it. He also has done a makeshift repair of the broken stone for Catherine Aylesworth Leonard and remounted it vertically.
Buried there are 5 Leonard family members:
Justus Leonard born July 15 1758 died April 12, 1840 (my 4th Great Grandfather)
Catherine Aylesworth Leonard (His wife) Born June 14, 1757 died November 1, 1840
3 of their 8 children
Catherine Leonard born October 28, 1785 died Feb 18 1808
Susannah Leonard born Oct 7 1792 died Sept 27, 1809*****
David Leonard born November 13, 1797 died march 21 1835 (headstone missing but there is a foot stone).
*** Note that the gravestone says age 18. This is an error, she was age 16 and just short of her 17th birthday. This same error is in my Leonard family Bible of 1815. I never calculated the dates myself but was made aware of the error after a visit to Stephentown in April 2005. While examining the graves I found the original gravestone hand made for Susannah. On it, Justus had scratched in her name and her age as "16" I have a photo attached of the original stone.
Since all 4 headstones and 5 foot stones are of the exact size, lettering and quality, I am assuming that they were all installed after the death of Justus and Catherine in 1840. Probably by their only surviving son, James Leonard. Justus relied on rocks that he inscribed information for his two daughters.
I am still not able to determine the ancestors for Justus who lived in Stephentown at least 52 years. I recently did had a Y-DNA test done and believe that our male Leonard line is Haplogroup I and that we are descendant from the same family that Solomon Leonard belonged to. He is a well documented Leonard born in Monmonthshire England in 1610.
Thanks for your efforts.
Sam Leonard
Sarasota, Fl
The above information and photos were sent by
Sam Leonard