This project is designed to collect together for Research & Discussions the historically documented & gateway profiles on the Leach / Leech / Leche/ Leitch etc family lines, originating in Britain. Please join and come and help.

• If you find historically significant profiles / lines - please attach them to the project, and add them into the text below. If you have any trouble joining or editing - yell for help to Sharon.
• If you're a Leach and have had your Y-DNA tested - please add your haplogroup below. In the long term, it is hoped that DNA testing of modern descendants will help us to figure out which lines belong together:
  • Tony Leach (Britain) I-M253 Gedmatch Kit No: T169859
  • Harold Leach R1-U106
  • Boyden Leach (America) I-M253
  • James Emerson Leach, Jr (America) Gedmatch M740667 Y-Hg N-M178. This Carolina line represented by Archibald Leach b.~1745 and Malcolm Leach b.1755 settled in the Carolina Colonies. The two families were not aware of each other’s presents after migrating to the British Carolina Colonies, but are now evidenced as kinsmen by their shared rare Y-Haplogroup.

Overview of Family History / Progenitor Details

• http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Leach
• https://www.houseofnames.com/leach-family-crest The present coate of this ancient family, one whereof living in Barkshire near Windsor in ye time of King Edward III., three Kings were entertained and feasted in his house - one ye King of England, one ye King of France, and one ye King of Scotts, which two Kings were at that time prisoners to King Edward; which King Edward to requite his good entertainment and other favours, gave him three crowns on his chief, indented gules, ye field ermine, which coate is borne by the name and family dispersed into many other countrays as Bedfordshire, Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire and Lancashire and many other places at this day.http://texts.wishful-thinking.org.uk/Tilley/ChatsworthHouse.html

Historically Useful Profiles:

Line Associated with Edward III:

• John le Leche surgeon to Edward III, b c 1300 Oxford, Oxfordshire; d c 1377 Chester

Line Associated with Henry IV:

• Sir Roger Leche c1361- Nov 1416

The Chatsworth Line:

• Sir Roger Leche, MP, Lord High Treasurer of England (1361- 23 Sep 1416)
• Sir Philip Leche d 1420
• George Leiche, Merchant of Chatsworth
• Ralph Leiche, of Chatsworth
• Francis Leche b c 1518,

The Carden Hall, Cheshire Line:

• John Leche II surgeon to Edward III (1327-77)
• David Leche
• John Leche III died c 1400
• John Leche IV c 1395 - after 1421
• John Jankyn Leche V 1422 - after 1454
• John Leche VI c 1455 - 1513
• John Leche VII c 1485 - 1552
• John Leche VIII 1510 - 1569
• John Leche IX 1561 - 1591
• John Leche X 1586 - 1644
• John Leche XI 1614 - 1657
• John Leche XII 1642 - 1711
• John O Leche XIII 1675 - 1731
• John Leche XIV 1704 - 1765
• William Leche 1734 - 1817
• John Hurleston Leche XV 1805 - 1844
• John Hurleston Leche XVI 1827 - 1903
• Sir John Hurlesto Leche 1889 - 1960

The Nantwiche, Cheshire Line

• John Leich, of Nantwiche
• John Leich, of Nantwiche
• John Leich, of Nantwiche fl 1566 d 1598

The American Line:

• Lawrence Leach b c1579 in Berkshire, England; d bef June 24, 1662 Salem, Essex, Massachusetts
• Giles Leach b c1632 Salem, Essex, Massachusetts; d aft 1705 West Bridgewater, Plymouth, Massachusetts. Giles' descendants are listed at https://www.accessgenealogy.com/genealogy/leach-genealogy-bridgewat....

Testwork on FTDNA suggests Giles' yDNA is either R-M269, or R-U106. https://www.familytreedna.com/public/Leach?iframe=ycolorized

Other testwork on FTDNA suggests Lawrence Leach's yDNA is I-M253 as derived from Boyden Leach

The Print Works line in Surrey 17 -1800's:

• John Leach b1708
• John Leach b1742 buried Bookham
• Sarah Jane Leach Bennett b1775 buried London

The South African Line from the 1820 Settler:

• Benjamin Leach d1872 South Africa

Queries & Discussion

• The American progenitor Lawrence Leach may actually be from Ash near Reading in Berkshire, England, rather than Ash in Somerset. This would make sense as several of his children may have been born in other Berkshire villages near Reading.
• It seems likely that Lawrence Leach (or one of his brothers) are the progenitors of both the American Leach families, and the descendants of the Leach print works operators in Surrey. An exact Y-DNA match (the only one) was found between Boyden Leach in Knoxville Tennessee (a descendent of Lawrence via his son John) and Tony Leach (UK born). The print works Leaches indicate their ancestry was to Leaches from Westerham Kent who departed to America in the 1600's.
• There is a strong possibility that the American progenitors Lawrence and Elizabeth Leach are not the parents of Giles Leach - for a summary see [https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Leach-282]. There is no record of the birth of Giles Leach.

Resources

• http://www.kmatthews.org.uk/carden/hist_mod.html
• http://chester.shoutwiki.com/wiki/Leche_House
• http://cheshire-heraldry.org.uk/visitations1613/1613.pdf p138-9
• http://texts.wishful-thinking.org.uk/Tilley/ChatsworthHouse.html
• https://books.google.co.za/booksid=YdIKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA702&lpg=PA702&...
• https://archive.org/details/visitationofches00glov/page/136/mode/2u...
• https://books.google.co.za/books?id=YdIKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA702&lpg=PA702...

See Also Related Geni Project Pages:

• Coal & Calico - The Bennetts & Leaches of Merton & Wandsworth
• Carden Hall, Cheshire, England
• Early Families of Salem Massachusetts