Mary Ann Leech Adams was born 22 October 1821 in Bambridge, County Down, Ireland to Hugh Leech and Ann Jamison. She grew up in a prosperous home where she wanted for nothing. However, she was determined to make her way in the world and so left the home of her parents to become a bonnet maker. She married William Adams on 10 October 1842. Later she with her husband and two small sons made the voyage across the Atlantic Ocean and landed in New Orleans in 1843 and then traveled on to Nauvoo. By May of 1849 the family had saved enough money to cross the plains to Utah. Their first residence was in Salt Lake City, Utah however they were later asked by Brigham Young to develop Southern Utah. The family moved to Parowan and experienced extremely trying times as they struggled to provide the basic necessities of life in those early years. Mary took a great interest in her children’s education and made sure to supply them with all the possible opportunities available to them in that remote part of the country. She was a hard worker and wise with money, her skills helped to provide for the family. Mary was a social woman and often their house would be filled with friends and important visitors. She lived the active life of a true pioneer woman and passed away at the age of eighty on 14 December 1902 leaving behind a legacy to her posterity and those who had the privilege to know her.
This manuscript is a collection of several folders containing manuscripts of Thomas Adams and family. In the third folder information can be found on Mary Ann Leech Adams. This manuscript is forty-four typewritten pages. The first page is a family group sheet containing pictures and important dates for Mary and William’s children and spouses. Following this there are brief histories of various family members, including a three-page history of Mary’s husband William and then a three-page history of Mary herself. Her history is entitled “Mary Ann Leech Adams a Pioneer of Parowan” and was written in 1944 by Fay Ollerton, a descendent of Mary. The history covers the major events in Mary’s life including migration to America, trek across the plains, and the settlement of Parowan, Utah. Following Mary’s biography other brief histories of family members are given including William’s second wife and the children from both of his marriages.