Maj George Leonard (1671-1716) - Find a Grave Memorial

Maj George Leonard

Birth

18 Apr 1671

Taunton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, USA

Death

5 Sep 1716 (aged 45)

Norton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, USA

Burial

Norton Common Cemetery

Norton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, USA Add to Map

Memorial ID

View Source

Age 46
__________
Vital Records of Norton, MA
Gravestone Record

Inscription

HERE LIES THE BODY OF MAJOR GEORGE LEONARD ESQ
LATE OF NORTON IN THE COUNTY OF BRISTOL IN NEW ENGLAND
WHO DECEASED SEPTEMBER 5, 1716 AETATIS ANNO 46 (Latin for Age 46)

"Old-timers tell a story from Colonial days about one Major George Leonard, a highfalutin fellow who sold himself soul and body to the Devil for gold. In 1716 His Satanic Majesty cashed in on his bargain, they say, whistling the Major's soul out of his body and then carrying his body off through the roof. Anyone who doesn't believe this can see with his own eyes the Devil's footprints on a rock below the eaves where Satan landed when he jumped off with his heavy burden. No one saw the corpse at the funeral, there being nothing but a log of wood in the box, to avert the townsfolks' suspicions." - Nutting, George M. (Works Progress Administration). Massachusetts: A Guide to Its Places and People (The American Guide Series). The Riverside Press, 1937, p. 309.