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Atlantic City, New Jersey Revolutionary War Sites
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REVOLUTIONARY WAR SITES IN ATLANTIC CITY, NEW JERSEY

Revolutionary War New Jersey
JEREMIAH LEEDS MARKER
Jeremiah Leeds Marker
Atlantic City - Revolutionary War

Jeremiah Leeds Marker

North Michigan Ave. and Atlantic Ave.
Map / Directions to the Jeremiah Leeds Marker

Many Revolutionary War soldiers played prominent roles in their communities after the war ended. Some veterans served in political office, others were farmers, merchants, businessmen, or judges.

This historic sign commemorates the role played by Revolutionary War veteran Jeremiah Leeds in the actual creation of Atlantic City. During the war, Leeds served as a Lieutenant in the Gloucester County Militia. [1] The sign describes Leeds's part in the history of this important New Jersey city:

"A Revolutionary War veteran standing six feet tall, Leeds came to Absecon Island with his ten children in 1785 from Leeds Point, NJ, built the first permanent structure of cedar logs, and cleared the nearby land to create a farm known as Leeds Plantation. That land is now occupied by the terminus of the Atlantic City Expressway and the recently improved gateway corridor to the resort. By the time he died Jeremiah was owner of more than 1,000 acres of the island. Leeds' second wife Millicent got a license to operate a tavern and boarding house called, 'Aunt Millie's Boarding House.' This was Atlantic City's first business establishment. Most of the homes in Atlantic City prior to its 1854 incorporation were built and owned by Jeremiah's descendants. His youngest son, Robert, became the first postmaster of Atlantic City. Another Leeds descendant Chalkley S. Leeds served as Atlantic City's first mayor."  [2]

Jeremiah Leeds is buried in the Oxford Circle Cemetery in Northfield.

Revolutionary War New Jersey

Source Notes:

1. ^ Jeremiah Leeds served in Captain Conover's Company, 3rd Battalion, of the Gloucester County Militia.
Military details drawn from:

Jeremiah Leeds' gravestone

William S. Stryker, Official Register of the Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Revolutionary War (Trenton: Wm. T. Nicholson & Co., 1872) Pages 343 and 353
Available to be read at the Internet Archive here

The Daughters of the American Revolution Genealogical Research System, where Jeremiah Leeds is Ancestor # A068916

2. ^ City of Atlantic City historic sign