New Fairfield's "Throwback Thursday": The Leatherman

 

The Leatherman (ca. 1839–1889) was a vagabond famous for his handmade leather clothes, who traveled a circuit between the Connecticut River and the Hudson River. Though his exact identity is controversial to this day, he was thought to beFrench-Canadian, or simply French. He walked a 365-mile route (taking 34-36 days) in western Connecticut and eastern New York. (click through the photos to see his route)

His routes were so regular that residents of New Fairfield knew exactly when he would arrive and would often have food ready for him. It is unknown how he made any money. He lived in caves made throughout his route and communicated mostly through grunts and hand gestures. The harsh blizzard of 1888 slowed his cycle by four days. Bourglay, then in his mid-60s, would never recover from the illness and hardship it brought. He made it through the rest of the winter but finally expired in a cave on the George Dell farm in Briarcliff Manor, New York. 

Identifying "Leatherman"

One theory of learning his identity dates back to Lyons, France in the 1920s and the birth of Jules Bourglay. Young Jules Bourglay met and fell in love with Miss Margaret Laron, the daughter of a somewhat wealthy leather merchant. Jules approached Margaret's father to ask for his daughter's hand in marriage. It was decided that Jules would be given the opportunity to work in the Laron family leather business, and if he could acquire the trade and be successful, he would be granted permission to marry Margaret.

 Jules Bourglay worked hard at the leather business. He was quickly given more responsibilities, including the purchase of more leather on the open market. One day in 1855, Jules made a large leather purchase. Then, almost overnight, the price of leather dropped by 40% due to a new breakthrough in the tanning process. Prior to 1855, leather tanning had been done with tree bark and was extremely labor-intensive. The tanning industry discovered a chemical compound that could tan the leather in a lot less time and with less physical effort. Unfortunately, because young Jules didn't have his eyes on the technology breakthroughs in his industry, he was stuck with a large stock of leather that could only be sold at a loss.

Laron's leather firm was ruined at the hand of Jules Bourglay and too ashamed to go back to his own family, the disgraced Jules became a homeless wanderer in France. He quickly became the ward of a local physician who took care of his basic needs for almost two years. One day, without notice, he disappeared from Lyons and was never seen in the city or the country again. There are some missing years in the story of Jules Bourglay. One could speculate that he simply wandered Europe as a beggar, then finally made his way onto a boat bound for the United States. The fact is, someone fitting his description and background showed up in the town of Harwinton, Connecticut in 1862.

Our Connecticut Leatherman, locally known in New Fairfield, did indeed speak French fluently and upon his death was found with a French prayer book. 

Our "Throwback Thursday" series, the internet trend of celebrating history through photos and stories, is designed to share pieces of our New Fairfield history. If you have a photo or story you would like to share, please send it to newfairfield@hamlethub.com