Leroy D. Miller Biography This biography appears on pages 757-758 in "History of Dakota Territory" by George W. Kingsbury, Vol. IV (1915) and was scanned, OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net. This file may be freely copied by individuals and non-profit organizations for their private use. Any other use, including publication, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission by electronic, mechanical, or other means requires the written approval of the file's author. This file is part of the SDGENWEB Archives. If you arrived here inside a frame or from a link from somewhere else, our front door is at http://usgwarchives.org/sd/sdfiles.htm LEROY D. MILLER. On the roster of county officials of Minnehaha county appears the name of Leroy D. Miller, now in the third term of his able service as coroner. He is well known in business circles of Sioux Falls as president and general manager of the L. D. Miller Company, undertakers, and as the owner of a profitable hack and livery business. He was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, February 24, 1868, and is a son of William J. and Martha (Hartman) Miller, the former of Scotch-Irish ancestry and the latter of Scotch and German extraction. The parents came to what is now Minnehaha county, South Dakota, in June, 1870, and the father homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of land two and a half miles west of Sioux Falls, engaging in farming until his death. Afterward his widow married Joseph Davenport, who died in 1903. She now makes her home in San Diego, California, having reached the age of sixty-three years. Leroy D. Miller was still a child when the family removed to Minnehaha county and he grew to manhood on the frontier, attending school during the winter sessions and walking three miles through the snow and cold to the schoolhouse. He laid aside his books at the age of eighteen and in September, 1887, left the farm and removed to Sioux Falls, where he secured a position as office boy with Dr. A. H. Tuft, sleeping on the premises and cleaning up the office for his board. During the summers he worked at odd jobs, so continuing until 1890, when he secured a position as driver of a grocery wagon in Sioux Falls. One year later he went to work in a warehouse in Ellis, South Dakota, and he was promoted after a short time to the position of grain buyer at Farmer, South Dakota. After retaining this connection for three years he removed to Montrose, this state, and purchased an interest in a livery barn there, conducting it for one year. He afterward spent four years on the home farm, which he rented, and then returned to Sioux Falls, where he engaged in the hack and livery business. To this he added an undertaking department in 1903, organizing the Miller Nelson Company, of which he became president and general manager. Mr. Nelson has since withdrawn from the business, which is now owned by Mr. Miller and his wife. The company carry a fine line of caskets and funeral supplies and control a liberal patronage, for their prices are reasonable and their business policy beyond question. On the 29th of November, 1903, at Decorah, Iowa, Mr. Miller married Miss Minnie C. Roney, and they have become the parents of two children, Ethel A. and Blanche M. Mr. Miller belongs to the Elks Club and is very prominent in fraternal circles, holding membership in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Woodmen of the World, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Yeomen, the Loyal Order of Moose and the Improved Order of Red Men. He was for two years a member of Company B, Second Regiment, Dakota National Guards, and was with the company in Washington at the inauguration of Benjamin Harrison. He gives his political allegiance to the republican party and is now serving his third term as coroner of Minnehaha county, proving a conscientious, capable and reliable public official. His business record also deserves commendation, for he has at all times employed methods which will bear the closest investigation and scrutiny, his success being the natural result of industry and ability.