Leo J. Beachy
1874-1927
gchsmuseum.com/shop/gift-shop/leo-beachy-photographsLeo J. Beachy was born on March 29, 1874, in Mount Nebo, Maryland. He grew up on a farm and later pursued a career as a school teacher. When he wanted to make sure his students had school pictures, he took up photography.
At age 16 Beachy began to show symptoms of what would be later diagnosed as Multiple Sclerosis. His condition worsened over the years and at age 26 he retired from teaching and decided to spend the rest of his life photographing the people and scenes of of Western Maryland. Many of his photographs highlight the National Road/U.S. Route 40.
Leo Beachy died on May 5, 1927. After his death, Beachy's family wanted to use his photography studio as a chicken coup. When they cleaned out his studio they threw away many (if not most) of Beachy's glass negatives. Fortunately, Beachy's sister Kate had another collection of his negatives and these were passed around for the next 70 years. Eventually, these negatives found their way back to Beachy's neice, Maxine Beachy Broadwater. At present, Beachy's negatives are being preserved.
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Last updated: 2010-11-08 08:26:18 |
