Leonard Origins

[copperlad]

Hello!

I've recently joined the Leonard forum administration team.  Many Leonards who have been tested already know me.  I've been researching Leonard genealogy for the past 8 years and have a fair amount of information on my web site at www.bradsport.com.  The information includes the first five or more generations of the early Massachusetts Leonards:  James of Taunton, his brother Henry of Braintree and later New Jersey, Solomon of Duxbury and Bridgewater, John of Springfield, and William of Bridgewater.  It also includes some information and hypotheses about the origins of James and Henry.

Having looked through the records for Leonards living in the British Isles in the 1500's and 1600's, I'd speculate that the Leonards come from many different origins.  When families were adopting surnames back in the 1200's, some took on the last name Leonard, perhaps after St. Leonard, patron saint of slaves, prisoners, horses, and more, or a place or parish named after St. Leonard.  In any case, by the 1500's there were Leonards all over England, Wales, and Ireland.  Beyond the British Isles, there were Leonards in France, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Italy, and elsewhere.  So it is not surprising that we find Leonards in a number of different haplogroups.

Y-DNA may provide answers to some of the questions about Leonards that have been troubling genealogists for centuries.  Were James, Solomon, and John, all of whom lived back in the mid-1600's in Massachusetts, related?  Perhaps we'll find out.  A number of James' descendants have now tested in the J2 haplogroup.  There's a hint that Solomon's descendants are in the I haplogroup -- if a couple of more descendants step forward and are tested, we may be able to verify that.  What of John's descendants?  Perhaps we will find a direct descendant of Sampson Lennard whose haplogroup will confirm whether James and Henry descended from Sampson and the nobility or from "truculent and profane" French ironworkers imported to England in the 1500's to bring in the new and better iron-refining technology in support of King Henry VIII's military.  And we may learn whether the mysterious William of Bridgewater was a descendant of Solomon or James (or neither).

We also have some strong Irish and German lines of Leonards to explore.  So join in!  There's sure to be a place for you and someone to discuss your genealogy with!

Brad Leonard

[cwnidog]

Greetings Copperlad from the Seattle branch of the truculent and profane!

It would indeed be interesting if we could get some members of the "Lennard" branch to get tested, but even if they did turn out to be J2, I think the timing and lack of paper trail would indicate that Sampson was a cousin of "our" James and Henry, not an ancestor.

[jasonleonard]

I have a little more information for you on the Leonard line to william.  I just started using family tree maker recently and found that I may have been a descendant of william.  I then started researching and found your site.  I followed the names back from william and everything lined up perfectly.  There are a few names you need to update.

1.  Merrill leonard had two daughters and a son.  Janice Leonard, Carol Leonard, and my father Daniel Leonard.
Daniel Leonard had two sons Scott Leonard and me Jason Leonard and I now have a son Jacob Leonard.
I'm not sure of carol and janice leonards birthday. But can find out.

[Sam Leonard]

I am Sam Leonard from Sarasota, Florida and I also live in Belgrade, Montana not far from Brad Leonard.  I would like to hear from Brad.

I recently did  my Y Chromosome 46 marker DNA with Ancestor.com  I have the results now.

I entered those results free into the SMGF (Sorenson) database and got a match on 36 of thirty seven markers for a living Leonard.  I went to Ancestry.com and found the Grandparents that this living Leonard had submitted to SMGF.  Using the Grandparent names and another contributors data at Ancestry.com I find I am connected to a Solomon Leonard born 1610 Monmonthshire, England.

This data may be incorrect so I would like to enter my DNA results into other Data Bases.  Can I do that here or do I have to pay another fee?

My brick wall is Justus Leonard my fourth Great Grandfather. I have extensive information on his descendants but am unable to connect him with his ancestors. He was born in seventeen fifty seven and live in Stephentown, NY for 52 years until his death in 1840.  His wife was Catherine Aylesworth.

Any help would be appreciated.  My data is on rootsweb and ancestry.com

Sam Leonard      Samflhomes@aol.com

[bhead]

I am Becky Twyne Head and a descendant of Valentine Leonhardt. (My mother was a Leonard from Welcome, NC)
Valentine Leonhardt b 13 Oct 1718 Germany
Michael Leonard b 29 Sep 1750 Rowan Co. NC (now Davidson Co.)
Valentine Leonard b 27 Jan 1784 Rowan Co. NC (now Davidson Co.)
David Hutts Leonard b 1821 Rowan Co. NC (now Davidson Co.)
Jesse Homer Leonard b 24 Dec 1881 Davidson Co.

[Scott Leonard]

Hi there, I'm Scott Leonard from San Francisco, born in Maine.  My father is 3rd generation Irish-American, and I've had success tracing my family back to Ireland, the exact village, township, parish and county, where Leonards are still living today.

My 4th great grandfather was Patrick Leonard, born in 1791 in Portrane, Dublin, Ireland.  But I heard through family lore that his father was Thomas Leonard born in Spain.  Not sure how true that is.  I've also heard that these Leonards have been living in that same Irish village for 500 years.  That would seem to contradict the idea that one of my patriarchs was born in Spain only 200 some odd years ago.

Old pictures I have of the elder generations, from the 1800s, show that my Leonards were 'black Irish', so I do believe that the Spanish Armada had something to do with that.  So maybe someone was indeed born in Spain...not sure.

Anyhow, I look forward to possibly meeting other Dublin Leonard descendants.

Coincidentally, I also descend from James Leonard of Pontypool Wales, but not on the Y line.

Scott Leonard:  lobsterjesus@yahoo.com