David Leet Post #552
Somers American Legion – David Leet Post #552, Somers, Wisconsin
©2013 Jacqueline Klapproth Nelson. All Rights Reserved.
Somers American Legion – David Leet Post #552, Somers, Wisconsin
©2013 Jacqueline Klapproth Nelson. All Rights Reserved.
Location
12th Street (Highway E), Somers, Wisconsin
Meetings
1st Tuesday at 7:00 pm
David Leet Biography
David Leverett Leet, born December 21, 1946 in Somers Township, was the son of Leverett Foster Leet and Virginia Louise Noble Leet. David and his wife Kathryn had one son, Jason.
David Leet comes from a family with a long military history as well as Somers Township community service. David was the great-great-grandson of Charles Leet, one of the very first pioneers settling in Somers Township, home steading in the 1830’s. Charles and Sarah Leet were natives of Connecticut, married in New York, and purchased land in Somers in 1836. David’s maternal great-great grandparents located in Somers where they bought 110 acres of land which became part of the Charles Leet farm. Members of the Leet family originally emigrated from Aberdenshire, Scotland along with many other families who settled in Somers.
Charles Leet took part in the War of 1812. George Leet, David’s great grandfather, entered the Army, enlisting in Company C, 2nd Illinois Light Artillery where he served for two years, being mustered out of the Civil War in 1865. His battery was stationed at Fort Donelson. George Leet served two terms on the Somers Town Board, Somers Treasurer for one term, and eight terms on the School Board. The Leet family built a log cabin on the corner of Green Bay Road and Highway JR on property that is now Petrifying Springs and the University of Wisconsin Parkside. For years prior to 1859, when the real Somers Town Hall was built, the Charles Leet home was the site of all town meeting, the first recorded May 1, 1843.
More Information
“The Marine Corps has notified the family of Capt. David L. Leet, former Somers man missing in action off North Vietnam for three years, that the young pilot’s status has been changed from missing to deceased. Leet was 25 years old when he was declared missing in action April 13, 1972, over the Gulf of Tonkin. Date of death is listed as April 13, 1975. David Leet is buried, along with other Leet family members, in the Oakwood Cemetery, Somers Township, Kenosha County.
Flying an EA-6 equipped with electronic gear designed to confuse North Vietnam’s antiaircraft and missile guiding radar, Leet was not seen after taking off from DaNang and heading out over the Gulf of Tonkin. His mission was to help protect U.S.. fighter-bombers striking North Vietnamese troop movements and bases. Leet was reportedly returning to DaNang after a successful mission when contact was lost about 60 miles off the coast of North Vietnam. With Leet was 1st John Christiansen, Ogden, Utah, whose status also was changed from missing to deceased. No sign of the plane was ever seen.
Leet had graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in June 1968, where he majored in golf course and park management. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps the same afternoon.”
(Source: Racine Journal, April 18, 1975)