Leech Hoose data

My great-grandmother Leta Scott's fourth husband Leech Francis Hoose was born on February 6, 1897 in New London, Ohio to Albert Hoose and Florence Leech. He appears to be the youngest of five children. His first name was his mother’s maiden name. At the time of the 1900 census, Leech Hoose was three years old. He was living in New London, Ohio, Huron County. His siblings were Albert (born in 1887), Lloyd (born in 1889), Clare (born in 1893) and Mabel (born in 1895). The census also notes that Bertha A. Martain (perhaps Martin), age 21 also lived with the family, daughter of Florence and stepdaughter of Albert. She had a 7-month old daughter named Frances. Perhaps her husband had a job somewhere that temporarily took him away, or he had joined the service.

Between 1900 and 1910 there were some changes in the Hoose household. His mother Florence passed away on January 11, 1906, and his father Albert married a woman named Ida Long who had a child—Sedrick—a year older than Leech. The 1910 census notes that the Albert Leech household included his son Albert (age 22), daughters Clare (age 17) and Mable (age 15) and Leech (age 13). Son/brother Lloyd, who would have been twenty years old, was not in the household.

On May 24, 1915, at age 18, Leech married (Irene) Goldie Goodall (age 17) in Richland County, Ohio. Goldie Goodall was born on January 22, 1898 in Hansford, Nanawha, West Virginia. Leech listed his occupation as farmer. Their son Laurence Donald Hoose was born on September 10, 1917 and died on November 10, 1917.

On June 5, 1918, Leech (age 21) registered for the draft for World War I. At that time he was working at Goodyear Tires and Rubber Co. in Akron, Ohio. I have not been able to learn yet whether he served or not.

Although the War was over by the 1920 census, the records show that Goldie, age 21, and son Lloyd C. Hoose, age 3, were living with her parents in New Haven Township, Huron County, Ohio. There is no census record for Leech. A blurb in the October 3, 1919 Sandusky Reporter, I suspect, explains their separation. Although the newspaper was unavailable, there was a search reference that quotes Goldie Leech as stating that she just didn’t love him any more. Nonetheless, Leech and Goldie were together again before they permanently separately and did have other children: Madalene (born 1922) and Howell (born 1924). Howell died on July 28, 1948 at age 24.

Leech Hoose married my great-grandmother Leta (Scott) Freeman on March 2, 1929 in Wood County, Ohio. He was 32 years old; she was 35. According to the marriage license, Leech was a widower. However, that is not accurate.

The 1940 census states that Goldie Hoose, age 42, was the divorced head of household with two children (Madalene Hoose, age 18 and Howell Hoose, age 16) and a lodger, Albeno Pertz, age 48, from Spain residing with her in Canton, Ohio.

Leech and Leta lived in Toledo, Ohio. He filed for divorce on October 8, 1931. He also filed an affidavit of poverty, that he was “without sufficient financial means to prepay or give security for costs of” the filing. The formal divorce notification was not with the divorce record.

After his divorce from Leta, there is little information about him. In 1942, at age 45, he registered for the draft for World War II. He was living in Canton, Ohio and working at Republic Steel Corp. in Canton.

Leech died on February 10, 1965. He was 68 years old, married and living in Canton, Ohio. He is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Canton.