HARTFORD – A farmer from Turner died on Monday after he became pinned beneath a tractor near Beedy Farm.

The body of Robert Leavitt, 51, of Leavitt Diary Farm was discovered shortly after sunset in a field along Bear Pond Road, according to friends.

By 9:30 p.m., Maine State Police had the area secured while awaiting an official from the Medical Examiner’s Office.

According to Trooper Daniel Hanson, family members came to look for Leavitt when he did not return home from tedding hay at the Hartford field.

They found the farmer pinned beneath his tractor, which had rolled over.

A local man with an excavator was called to help move the equipment. However, it was believed that Leavitt had already died.

State police late Monday night were investigating the cause of the accident.

Leavitt was well-known in the Turner area. He had encountered a string of misfortunes in recent years. In 2003, a maple tree fell on his Plains Road property, crushing three of his trucks. Shortly after, a piece of farm equipment caught fire during a cold spell.

In March 2004, fire swept through Leavitt’s dairy barn, killing a goat and 42 cows the farmer considered his best milkers. The fire also destroyed parts of Leavitt’s home.

The Plains Road farm is between Merrill Mills Road and Route 219.

Shortly after the 2004 blaze, several of Leavitt’s neighbors and friends came forward to help him recover from the fire. His home has since been rebuilt. Leavitt lived there with his wife, Beverly.