Shepherd Leach was descended in the fifth generation from Lawrence Leach who settled at Salem, Massachusetts, in 1629 and is said to have been connected with the establishment (at Lynn, Massachusetts) of the first iron works in the New England colonies. The son of Abisha Leach, an iron founder and Revolutionary soldier, by his wife, Patience Woods, Shepherd Leach was born in Easton, Massachusetts, United States.
One of the oldest and most prosperous of Easton's industries was the smelting and casting of iron. Young Leach early displayed business ability. At twenty-four he bought his father's iron works, to which he added within a few years the furnace of his chief competitor in Easton. In the sales contract the latter agreed not to operate any iron works within a distance of twenty miles. Leach, as the agreement indicates, was ambitious to become a captain of industry. He promptly undertook to enlarge the output of the combined businesses. To supply increased power he constructed a large reservoir, and by the purchase of several hundred acres of bog land and the lease of mining privileges on other lands, secured adequate supplies of raw material.
During the decade 1820-1830, increased demand for heavy castings for engines and machinery for the new textile and other factories in southern New England generated a wave of prosperity for the iron works of southern Massachusetts. Believing that this prosperity would last, Leach expanded his business still further by buying out a number of competitors in Easton and nearby towns. Soon he was operating seven furnaces in Easton alone. His profits seem to have been greater than the iron industry could absorb, for he invested in other local enterprises: spinning-mills, a gristmill, and a sawmill.
In 1832 his Easton iron works employed 100 workmen, producing 200 tons of pig iron and 600 tons of castings annually. Leach became the wealthiest man in the community, which in 1830 numbered 1, 756 persons, and took a leading part in a variety of local activities. His greatest distinction, outside of business, was attained in the Massachusetts militia, in which he held a major-general's commission. On Muster days he cut a fine figure. He "was large, fleshy, of a commanding appearance, a fine officer on the field, and seemed to enjoy his position as general".
He was a strong supporter of the local "evangelical society" and a bosom friend of its pastor. Avoiding as far as possible the strife between opposing factions which embittered religious life in Easton as well as in many other New England communities in his day, he gave his interest in church affairs a practical turn. He had the reputation of being open-handed in his charities and liberal in his business dealings. His capitalistic ambitions resulted disastrously. He acquired more property than he could profitably manage, and after his death, which was the result of a fall from his chaise, his affairs were found to be in bad condition.
Quotes from others about the person
"On stormy Sundays he would get out an immense covered wagon that he owned, and drive from house to house until it was filled with church-goers, and then to meeting. . Though not much of a singer himself, General Leach was very fond of singing, and would lead the choir, standing with his back to the audience and beating time in the most approved style. "
Leach married Phoebe Torrey in 1804.
