George E. Leach

George Emerson Leach

Leach as Militia Bureau Chief
Born (1876-07-14)July 14, 1876
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Died July 17, 1955(1955-07-17) (aged 79)
Los Angeles, California
Buried Fort Snelling National Cemetery
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1905–1941
Rank Major General
Commands held 151st Field Artillery Regiment
56th Field Artillery Brigade
National Guard Bureau
34th Infantry Division
Battles/wars Pancho Villa Expedition
World War I
World War II
Awards Distinguished Service Cross
Army Distinguished Service Medal
Purple Heart
Other work Mayor of Minneapolis
Insurance executive
Owner, vending business

George Emerson Leach (July 14, 1876 – July 17, 1955) was a United States Army Major General and two-time Republican Mayor of Minneapolis.

Early life

George Emerson Leach was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on July 14, 1876,[1] and was raised in Minneapolis. After graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1897,[2] he began a career in insurance.[3]

Career

Military

In April 1905, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of Field Artillery in the Minnesota National Guard.[4] Leach advanced through the ranks of the military in command and staff assignments. He graduated from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in 1916.[5] In 1916-7, he saw active duty on the United States–Mexico border during the Pancho Villa Expedition; first as a Major, and later as Colonel and Commander of the 151st Artillery Regiment.[6]

General John J. Pershing (second from left) decorates Douglas MacArthur with Distinguished Service Cross. Charles T. Menoher (left) reads citation. Leach (fourth from left) and William Joseph Donovan await their decorations.

During World War I, Leach commanded the 151st Field Artillery Regiment, a unit of the 42nd Infantry Division. He took part in battles at Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, and Meuse-Argonne.[7] Leach remained in command of the 151st Field Artillery until November 1921, after which he returned to the insurance business as manager of the St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Company.[8]

In 1923, Leach was promoted to Brigadier General as commander of Minnesota's 59th Field Artillery Brigade.[9] In 1931, he was appointed Chief of the National Guard Bureau and was promoted to Major General.[10] He served in this position until 1935, after which he returned to command of the 59th Field Artillery Brigade, reverting to his permanent rank of Brigadier General.[11] In 1937, he was elected President of the National Guard Association of the United States.[12]

From 1940 until his retirement in 1941, Leach was commander of the 34th Infantry Division, again receiving promotion to Major General. Under his command the division was activated and began its initial preparations and training for entry into World War II.[13]

After the war, Leach operated a vending machine company, George E. Leach, Inc., and was Chairman of the National Automatic Merchandising Association.[14]

Political

In June 1921, Leach was elected Mayor of Minneapolis.[15] He stood for election as a conservative, and was re-elected in 1923.[16] During his second term, Leach's opponents accused him of being a communist because he opposed private ownership of a hydroelctric dam on the Mississippi River.[17]

At the same time, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was growing in Minnesota within the ranks of several fraternal orders, primarily the Masons and Shriners. Leach was a member of several such organizations, and the Klan initially regarded him as a de facto ally but later considered him an adversary because he had appointed a Catholic as his secretary and had dined with the Knights of Columbus. The Klan also disliked Leach because he prevented police officers from joining the Klan and because he launched an investigation into Klan activity at the University of Minnesota.[18] The KKK fielded its Exalted Cyclops, Roy Miner, as a mayoral candidate against Leach in 1923. Miner campaigned on elimination of illegal gambling and vice, which he said Leach abetted. The KKK found a woman in a local jail who said she had had an affair with Leach, and publicized this in an effort to enmesh Leach in a scandal.[19] A grand jury decided the story of the affair was criminally libelous. The case went to trial; Floyd B. Olson handled the prosecution against five KKK leaders.[20] The witness said she had lied about Leach, who denied both the affair and the charges of protecting vice and gambling. The all-Protestant jury found the defendants guilty and sentenced them to prison.[21] Leach won a landslide re-election against the KKK's stand-in for Miner, Senator William A. Campbell.[22]

In 1926, Leach was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor. He was re-elected Mayor in 1927,[23] but was defeated for re-election in 1929.[24] In 1937, he was again elected Mayor.[25] He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor of Minnesota in 1938.[26] He was re-elected Mayor in 1939,[27] and served until 1941.

Amateur sports affiliation

Leach was an avid skier. In 1924 he managed the U.S. Olympic Ski Team,[28] and he was the National Ski Association's representative to the 1924 convention which led to the creation of the International Ski Federation.[29]

Death

Leach died in Los Angeles, California on July 17, 1955.[30] He was buried at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Section D.S., Site 65-N.[31]

Awards and legacy

Leach's awards included the Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Service Medal and Purple Heart in addition to other service and achievement awards.[32] The George E. Leach Range and Leach Avenue at Camp Ripley, a Minnesota National Guard training facility, are named for him.[33]

Leach was posthumously named to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.[34]

Ribbon bar

Gold star
Gold star
Gold star
Gold star
1st Row Distinguished Service Cross Army Distinguished Service Medal
2nd Row Purple Heart Mexican Border Service Medal World War I Victory Medal w/ three battle clasps Army of Occupation of Germany Medal
3rd Row American Defense Service Medal American Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal Minnesota Medal for Merit
4th Row Officer of the Legion of Honour French Croix de guerre 1914–1918 with Palm and Star Commander of the Order of the Crown of Italy Knight 1st Class of the Norwegian Order of St. Olav[35][36]

References

  1. ↑ United States Coast Artillery Association, Coast Artillery Journal, Volume 75, 1932, page 54
  2. ↑ The University of Minnesota, The Gopher: Annual Publication of the Student Body of the University of Minnesota, Volume 33, 1920, page 227
  3. ↑ Marion Daniel Shutter, History of Minneapolis: Gateway to the Northwest, Volume 2, 1932, page 226
  4. ↑ Minnesota Adjutant General, Annual Report, 1905, page 166
  5. ↑ Minnesota War Records Commission, Commission Publications, Volume 2, 1924, page 376
  6. ↑ Utica Daily Press, Leach to Head National Guard, November 14, 1931
  7. ↑ George E. Leach, War Diary, 1923, Title page
  8. ↑ Northwest Insurance magazine, Candidate for Governor, Volume 36, 1938, pages 22-23
  9. ↑ Minnesota Adjutant General, Annual report, 1923, page 4
  10. ↑ New York Times, Gen. G.E. Leach Heads Army Militia Bureau, November 14, 1931
  11. ↑ National Guard Bureau, Annual report, 1938, page 8
  12. ↑ New York Times, Guard Elects Mayor Leach, October 31, 1937
  13. ↑ John H. Hougen, The story of the famous 34th Infantry Division, 1949
  14. ↑ Billboard magazine, 11 Operators Seek Part in Canteen Case, October 4, 1947
  15. ↑ New York Times, Townley Radical Beaten: Minneapolis Election for Mayor Returns Conservative Candidate, June 14, 1921
  16. ↑ New York Times, Leach Re-elected Minneapolis Mayor, June 13, 1923
  17. ↑ David M. Chalmers, Hooded Americanism: The History of the Ku Klux Klan, 1981, page 149
  18. ↑ Chalmers, David Mark (1987). Hooded Americanism: The History of the Ku Klux Klan. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. p. 149.
  19. ↑ Chalmers, Hooded Americanism, pp. 150-151
  20. ↑ John Beecher, Tomorrow Is a Day: A Story of the People in Politics, 1980, page 189
  21. ↑ Kenneth T. Jackson, The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930, pages 161-162
  22. ↑ Kenneth T. Jackson, The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930, 1992, pages 161-162
  23. ↑ New York Times, Minneapolis Re-elects Leach Mayor, June 15, 1927
  24. ↑ Herbert Lefkovitz, New York Times, Leach's Landslide Held Spectacular, May 16, 1937
  25. ↑ Chicago Tribune, Minneapolis Mayor, June 16, 1937
  26. ↑ Christian Science Monitor, Benson Leads in Minnesota, June 21, 1938
  27. ↑ New York Times, Minneapolis Re-elects Leach, June 14, 1939
  28. ↑ Christian Science Monitor, Ski Team Will Take Chicago Olympic Bid, January 16, 1924
  29. ↑ U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum, Honored member page, George Emerson Leach, accessed April 16, 2013
  30. ↑ Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Deaths Elsewhere: George Emerson Leach, July 19, 1955
  31. ↑ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Nationwide Gravesite Locator, entry for George E. Leach, accessed April 16, 2013
  32. ↑ National Guard Bureau, Biographical sketch, George E. Leach, accessed April 16, 2013
  33. ↑ Minnesota National Guard, Memorializations at Camp Ripley, 2010, pages 4, 6
  34. ↑ New York Times, Five Named Posthumously To U.S. Ski Hall of Fame, February 13, 1969
  35. ↑ Associated Press, Reading Eagle, Leach Placed at Head of National Guard, November 13, 1931
  36. ↑ Sons of the American Revolution, The Sons of the American Revolution Magazine, Volumes 50-53, 1955, page 12
Political offices
Preceded by
J. E. Meyers		 Mayor of Minneapolis
1921 – 1929 		Succeeded by
William F. Kunze
Preceded by
Thomas E. Latimer		 Mayor of Minneapolis
1937 – 1941 		Succeeded by
Marvin L. Kline
Military offices
Preceded by
MG William G. Everson		 Chief of the National Guard Bureau
1931 – 1935 		Succeeded by
Col. Herold J. Weiler (acting)
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