J.H. Leard was a Methodist clergyman who served in the Union Army as chaplain of the the First Arkansas Infantry. After the end of hostilities, he remained in the state as agent for the American Union Commission. His hard working attempts to relieve the extreme difficulties the war had brought to the people, especially the families of loyal Arkansans helped many but at the cost of his physical and mental health. He recovered to renew his preaching career in the West, moving to California for his health and them to Spokane in Washington Territory. He was active in religious and civic affairs in Spokane but his health broke down again and he died of lung congestion. He was fifty-four years old and left a wife and two children. (By John Osborne)
Life Span
to
Life Summary
Full name
John Hitchcock Leard
Place of Birth
Burial Place
Birth Date Certainty
Exact
Death Date Certainty
Exact
Gender
Male
Race
White
Sectional choice
North
Origins
Free State
No. of Spouses
1
No. of Children
2
Occupation
Military
Clergy
Relation to Slavery
White non-slaveholder
Church or Religious Denomination
Methodist
Government
State legislature
Military
Union Army