Leatherman (vagabond)

Leatherman
The Leatherman (June 9, 1885)
Born
Jules Bourglay?

c. 1839
DiedMarch 24, 1889(1889-03-24) (aged 49–50)
Ossining, Westchester County, New York, U.S.
Resting placeSparta Cemetery

The Leatherman (born Jules Bourglay (unconfirmed)? c. 1839–1889) was a vagabond famous for his handmade leather suit of clothes who traveled through the northeastern United States on a regular circuit between the Connecticut River and the Hudson River from roughly 1857 to 1889. Of unknown origin, he was thought to be French-Canadian because of his fluency in the French language, his "broken English", and the French-language prayer book found on his person after his death. His identity remains unknown, and controversial. He walked a repeating 365-mile (587 km) route year after year, which took him through certain towns in western Connecticut and eastern New York, returning to each town roughly every 34 days.[1]

  1. ^ DeLuca, Dan (2008). The Old Leatherman. Middletown: Wesleyan University Press. p. xi. ISBN 9780819568625.