John was born Johann Christian Asmus Leu at Bornemoor, near Eckenforde Germany.
Johannes Christian Asmus Leu was born December 29, 1868 in Bornemoor, Germany (near Eckenforde, Germany) to Johann Friedrich and Catharina Margaretha Dorothea (Moller) Leu (born April 5, 1836).

In 1885 Johannes, applied for and was granted permission to immigrate. So just before he turned 17 years old, he left his parents and his younger sisters Helena Christina Friederica (born December 11, 1871) and Wilhelmine Christian (born December 18, 1877) and set sail to the United States of America...entering the port of New Orleans, Louisiana. (Another sister, Christina Margaretha Dorothea [born February 17, 1874] had passed away at the age of 5 on April 5, 1879.

On August 2, 1896 John C. Leu and Emma Bernadie Suhr (also an immigrant from Germany) were united in marriage in Omaha, Nebraska.

This union was blessed with eleven children...Helen, Margaret, William, Anne, Henrietta, Elsie, John, Ida, Clara, Olga and Gerhardt.

John first worked in a packing plant in Omaha, Nebraska. In 1902 the family moved to a farm near Wisner, Nebraska. John received his citizenship on September 17, 1906 at West Point, Nebraska. John, having health issues was in need of a dryer climate, so in 1919 the family moved to the Bushnell, Nebraska area and purchased farm land. They remained there until 1944 when they moved to Alliance, Nebraska to be near four of their daughters..Elsie, Ida, Clara and Olga.

On March 31, 1945 John died of a heart attack in Alliance, Nebraska. John was survived by his wife Emma and 9 of his 11 children.....and 17 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his daughter Helen Leu in1897, by his son Johanna Diedrich Ernst Leu in 1912, and by a grandchild Mildred Joan. Leu in1928. Internment was in the Alliance, Nebraska cemetery.

The following is from The Alliance Times Herald about April 2, 1945

John Christian Leu, a resident of western Nebraska for 27 years died Saturday at St. Joseph's hospital following a brief illness of heart disease and paralysis.
Mr. Leu was born December 21, 1868, in Germany, and came to Nebraska at the age of 18 years. He was married in Omaha, August 2, 1896, to Miss Emma Suhr, and they were engaged in farming in eastern Nebraska until 1918, when the family moved to Kimball County. Mr. and Mrs. Leu have made their home in Alliance since May, 1944.
Survivors are Mrs. Leu; seven daughters, Mrs. Julius Witt, Bancroft, Miss Ann Leu, Anaheim, Calif., Mrs. W.B. Van Pelt, Lyons, Colo., Miss Elsie Leu, Mrs. John Winters, Mrs. S.J. Kline, and Mrs. R.E. Bowman, all of Alliance; two sons, William C., Lompoc, Calif., and T-5 G.D. Leu, who has been in the Pacific area for more than three years. Mr. Leu is also survived by 17 grandchildren and one great grandchild. One daughter and one son preceded him in death.