James Russell Leech was a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

.

Biography

J. Russell Leech was born in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania

Ebensburg, Pennsylvania

Ebensburg is a borough located in, and is the seat of, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, west of Altoona and surrounded by Cambria Township. It is situated in the Alleghenies about 2025 feet above sea level. Ebensburg is located in a rich bituminous coal region. In the past, saw mills, tanneries,...

. He attended the Mercersburg Academy

Mercersburg Academy

Mercersburg Academy is an independent, coeducational boarding school for grades 9-12 located in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, United States. The school's mission is:...

, in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania

Mercersburg, Pennsylvania

Mercersburg is a borough in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, southwest of Harrisburg. Originally called Black Town, it was incorporated in 1831. In 1900, 956 people lived here, and in 1910, 1,410 people lived here...

. He graduated from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington, Pennsylvania

Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, within the Pittsburgh Metro Area in the southwestern part of the state...

, in 1911, and from the law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

 department of the University of Pennsylvania

University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...

 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 in 1915. He was admitted to the bar in 1915 and commenced practice

Practice of law

In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the professional services of a lawyer or attorney at law, barrister,...

 in Ebensburg. During the First World War, he was appointed as a second lieutenant

Second Lieutenant

Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...

 and served with the Seventh Ammunition Train.

Leech was elected as a Republican to the Seventieth

70th United States Congress

The Seventieth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1927 to March 3, 1929, during the last two years of...

, Seventy-first

71st United States Congress

The Seventy-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1929 to March 4, 1931, during the first two years...

, and Seventy-second

72nd United States Congress

The Seventy-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1931 to March 4, 1933, during the last two years...

 Congresses and served until his resignation on January 29, 1932, having been appointed a member of the United States Board of Tax Appeals (now the United States Tax Court

United States Tax Court

The United States Tax Court is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides that the Congress has the power to "constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court"...

) to fill a vacancy. He was reappointed in 1934 and again in 1946, and served on this court until his death in Chevy Chase, Maryland

Chevy Chase, Maryland

Chevy Chase is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland. In addition, a number of villages in the same area of Montgomery County include "Chevy Chase" in their names...

. Interment in Lloyd Cemetery in Ebensburg.