Richard Leader (1609–1661) was an English businessman who was the first manager of the

Saugus Iron Works Saugus may refer to: Places * Saugus, Massachusetts, U.S. * Saugus, Santa Clarita, California, U.S., named after its sister city in Massachusetts * Saugus, Montana, U.S. * Saugus River, in Massachusetts, U.S. Education * Saugus High School (Calif ...

, the first integrated

ironworks An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. He later engaged in business in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

and

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

Early life

Leader was born in 1609. On October 11, 1628, he married Elizabeth Stacy of

Uckfield Uckfield () is a town in the Wealden District of East Sussex in South East England. The town is on the River Uck, one of the tributaries of the River Ouse, on the southern edge of the Weald. Etymology 'Uckfield', first recorded in writing as ...

. They had two children together. He was a merchant in

Salehurst Salehurst is a village in the Rother district of East Sussex, England, within the civil parish of Salehurst and Robertsbridge. It lies immediately to the north-east of the larger village of Robertsbridge, on a minor road; it is approximately no ...

and engaged in trade between England and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Saugus Iron Works

It is unknown how Leader acquired his knowledge in

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

, but it is likely that he had some contact with the Irish ironmaking industry. In 1645, the Company of Undertakers for the Iron Works in New England hired Leader to replace

John Winthrop the Younger John Winthrop the Younger (February 12, 1606 – April 6, 1676) was an early governor of the Connecticut Colony, and he played a large role in the merger of several separate settlements into the unified colony. Early life Winthrop was born ...

as manager. He was given a seven-year contract with a salary of £100 a year from the Undertakers. After arriving in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, Leader reviewed site survey for the

iron works An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

in Braintree and looked into some other locations. He selected a location in Lynn (now part of present-day Saugus) on the

Saugus River The Saugus River is a river in Massachusetts. The river is long, drains a watershed of approximately , and passes through Wakefield, Lynnfield, Saugus, and Lynn as it meanders east and south from its source in Lake Quannapowitt in Wakefield ...

. The new iron works, which was called Hammersmith, began operations in 1646. Leader leased the site from Thomas Dexter for £40, until May 1647, when Leader bought him out. In 1650, Leader, who had encountered difficulties with the Undertakers, left the Iron Works and was replaced by John Gifford.

Religion

In 1646, when Robert Child,

Samuel Maverick Samuel Augustus Maverick (July 23, 1803 – September 2, 1870) was a Texas lawyer, politician, land baron and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. His name is the source of the term "maverick," first cited in 1867, which means "indepe ...

, and

William Vassall English colonist William Vassall (1592-1656) is remembered both for promoting religious freedom in New England and commencing his family's ownership of slave plantations in the Caribbean. A patentee of the Massachusetts Bay Company, Vassall was amo ...

were imprisoned by the

Massachusetts General Court The Massachusetts General Court (formally styled the General Court of Massachusetts) is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the earliest days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, ...

for their petition for

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

, they were confined to Leader's house. Child wrote that Leader had more "curious books than I, especially about Divinity businesses." In May 1651, Leader was found guilty of reproaching the church and government. He was fined £200, later reduced to £50. He made an acknowledgment and paid the fine.

Maine and Barbados

After leaving the iron works, Leader attempted to mine copper at

John Endecott John Endecott (also spelled Endicott; before 1600 – 15 March 1664/1665), regarded as one of the Fathers of New England, was the longest-serving governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which became the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He serv ...

's farm in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

(now part of present-day Topsfield). The business was not successful. In 1650, Leader moved to

South Berwick, Maine South Berwick is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 7,467 at the 2020 census. South Berwick is home to Berwick Academy, a private, co-educational university-preparatory day school founded in 1791. The town was s ...

(then part of

Kittery Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The southernmost town in t ...

), where he had been granted the exclusive right to use the

Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...

to erect mills. The sawmill, which had nineteen saws, was called the "Great Works" and did a great deal of business until it was stopped due to a legal dispute with the heirs of John Mason. In 1652, Leader became a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. When the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...

extended their jurisdiction into the

Province of Maine The Province of Maine refers to any of the various English colonies established in the 17th century along the northeast coast of North America, within portions of the present-day U.S. states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, and the Canadian ...

, Leader went to London to protest on behalf of the government of Edward Godfrey. On April 3, 1652, Leader purchased a house and farm in

Strawbery Banke Strawbery Banke is an outdoor history museum located in the South End historic district of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It is the oldest neighborhood in New Hampshire to be settled by Europeans, and the earliest neighborhood remaining in the prese ...

(

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

) for £180. He sold the property in 1655 to the Cutts brothers. He was described by the Cutts as "brother Leader", so it is supposed that he was married to a member of that family by this time. By 1656, Leader was in

, where he engaged in sugar-refining and salt manufacturing. In a letter from 1660, he complained about the island's climate and stated that if it wasn't for the

slave labor Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

available in Barbados, he would prefer to reside in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

. He also wrote that he intended to leave "this western world" for Ireland, as he saw "no place either for profit or pleasure so good as Ireland", which was remarkable considering that conditions there following the Cromwellian war were very poor. Illness prevented Leader from leaving Barbados until the spring of 1661. He died in Kittery on December 27, 1661. He was survived by two daughters, Elizabeth Hole, who was killed by Native Americans on May 4, 1705, and Anna Clark of

Portsmouth, New Hampshire Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 census it had a population of 21,956. A historic seaport and popular summer tourist destination on the Piscataqua River bordering the state of Maine, Portsmou ...

, who lived until at least 1723.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leader, Richard 1609 births 1661 deaths British emigrants to Barbados Businesspeople in the salt industry Businesspeople in the sugar industry Businesspeople in timber Colony of Barbados people American ironmasters Kingdom of England emigrants to Massachusetts Bay Colony People from Salehurst People from Berwick, Maine People from Portsmouth, New Hampshire People from Saugus, Massachusetts People of colonial Maine People of colonial Massachusetts People of colonial New Hampshire