Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut

|RS. DELIA A. JELLIFF, one of the hon- ^Jl ored ladies of Georgetown, whose noble hte in this world is now merging into the better, purer life beyond, now showing its silver radiance in the serenity of her later years, was born June i6, 1827, a daughter of Elijah Gregory, and a granddaughter of Moses Gregory, one of the early citizens in the town of Norwalk. Moses Gregory was born February 22, 1771, and educated in the common schools of Norwalk. Early in life he was apprenticed to the tailor's trade, at which he worked but a very short time, however, finding in farming a more congenial occupation. He married Miss Polly Fillow, who was born February 14, 1779, a daughter of James Fillow, a farmer of Westport, and their children were: Chloe, born February 3, 1796, married Al- fred Taylor; Annie, born April 17, 1798, married John Hurlburt; Orpha, born June 15, 1800, mar- ried Nathan Gregory; Nathan^ born December 23, 1802, married Harriet Disbrow; Elijah, father of our subject; Esther, born December 14, 1812, married John P. Hurlburt; Moses, born Decem- ber 13,1 808 ; and Delia, born December 29, 1 809. Elijah Gregory, father of Mrs. Jellifl, was born May 3 1, 1805, and after a few years attend- ance in the district schools learned the shoemak- er's trade, which, together with farming, was his lifelong occupation. He married Orpha Godfrey, a daughter of Bradley and Orpha (Fillow) God- frey, farming people of Weston. This union was gladdened by four children: Delia A., our sub- ject; Alfred T., born May 3, 1831, died May 11, 1843; Nancy, born February i, 1834, married George B. Sturges, who was born August 3, 1834; and Orpha L. , born August 9, 1840, married George E. Smith, who was born June i, 1844. Delia A. (Gregory) Jelliff, our subject, re- ceived a good education in the schools of Wes- ton, and on reaching young womanhood was married to Aaron Bartram, Jr., of Redding, by whom she became the mother of two children: (i) Elijah G., born May 23, 1855, now in the einploy of the wire factory at New Canaan. He married Miss Sarah Bell, who was born Septem- ber 21, 1858, and they have three children: Clayton G., born June 3, 1878; Floyd B., born September 3, 1882, and Stanley U., born April 16, 1885. (2) Lavinia F., born June 8, 1857, married John Hohman, a son of Henry Hohman, a farmer of Redding, and they had two children: Charles L. , born October 18, 1882, and Frank G., born February 9, 1888. Aaron Bartram was given the usual educational privileges of the time, and learned the shoemaking trade, which fur- nished him occupation all his life. On March 7, 1 86 1, he was called to his last rest, greatly re- spected by all who knew him. After his death our subject married Aaron Jelliff, who was en- gaged in the wire business and also in farming in Weston. Mr. Jelliff passed away January i, 1884, leaving, besides his widow, several children by a former marriage to mourn his departure. Mrs. Jelliff has since lived practically retired, de- voting her time to her father, Elijah Gregory (who died January 26, 1899, at the advanced age of ninety-three years, seven months), and to char- itable organizations, in which she takes a keen interest. She is much beloved by all who know her for her many kindly traits of character. James Fillow, the maternal grandfather of Mrs. Jelliff, was born in 1737 at Norwalk, and on February 8, 1759, he married Mary 01m- stead, who was born in 1742, a daughter of Gar- ner Olmstead, and died November 26, 1828. Mr. Fillow received only a common-school edu- cation, but possessed a memory so retentive, and a reason so logical, that his early disadvan- tages were in a great measure overcome by his natural ability. He followed farming as a life work, and knowing the value of personal effort in the management of an estate, he carefully supervised his own affairs, and became a large land holder, at his death leaving an estate of $1, 1 14,909 to be divided among his heirs. He attended strictly to his own affairs, and was well and favorably known for his probity and manly worth. In his political affiliations he was, in middle life, a Loyalist; he was fifty-two years of age when Washington became President, and after seeing the dark day of the formative period of our government, saw peace declared after the war of 1812. In charitable works he played a generous part, and was a devout member of the Methodist Church. He acquired the habit of taking snuff, and had a leather pocket put in his jacket in order to facilitate this, to him, pleas- ure. He was a man of fine physique, weighing 240 COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. at least 175 pounds, though in the last years of his earthly career he was a great sufferer from asthma. He died April 16. 1817, and was bur- ied in Poplar Plains, Westport. His children were: (i) Benjamin, born August 19, 1765; married Miss Clementine Gregory. (2) Susan- nah, born April 2, 1769, married Lewis H. Hanford. (3) Chloe, born September 24, 1772, married Stephen Gregory. (4) Orpha, born June 18, 1775, died in 1858, married on August 20, 1805, to Bradley Godfrey, who was born July 12, 1783, and died August 12, 1837, and there was born to them Eiias Godfrey, who mar- ried Matilda Godfrey. (5) Polly, born Febru- ary 14, 1779, married Moses Gregory, and to this union were born — Elijah, who married Or- •pha Godfrey, daughter of Bradley Godfrey; Orpha, born April 26, 1 809, married May 11, 1826, to Elijah Gregory, died September 15, 1878. (6) Elijah, born May 6, 1781, married Elizabeth Disbrow. (7) Anna, born March 29, 1784, married Aaron Jelliff. The above mentioned Elijah, who married Elizabeth Disbrow, was a son of our subject's great-grandfather, James Pillow, brother to her two grandmothers, Orpha and Polly. THEODORE LEEDS, an active citizen and well-to-do merchant of Stamford, Fairfield Co., Conn., was born in that town May 9, 1838, on the farm of his father, Samuel Leeds. Carey Leeds, the grandfather, came to this sec- tion from Long Island at an early date. Samuel Leeds was born at Flushing, Long Island, and was only a boy when the family set- tled in Stamford, where he attended the public schools and grew to manhood. He married Re- becca Scofield, daughter of Silas Scofield, and by her had two children: Theodore, and Emma F. (Mrs. Mortimer Mosher), of Stamford. Mr. Leeds carried on farming in Stamford all his life. He was an Episcopalian in religious connection, and politically was a supporter of the Demo- cratic party. Theodore Leeds was reared on the home farm, in his youthful days attending the local district schools, where he acquired a good education. He began his business life by clerking in the grocery store of Roswell Hoyt, in Stamford, continuing with him in that capacity until 1859, when he became a partner in the concern, the firm being known as Hoyt & Leeds. They con- ducted this store in partnership until Mr. Hoyt's death, which occurred in 1884, and our subject has since carried on the store alone. He has acquired a comfortable competence in the steady pursuit of his business affairs, and is looked upon as one of the substantial citizens of the town, financially and otherwise. He was treasurer of the borough, and in 1895-96 he served the county of Fairfield in the position of treasurer to the entire satisfaction of all concerned. Socially, he is an active member of the Rod and Gun Club, and he affiliates with the F. & A. M. , unit- ing with Union Lodge and Rittenhouse Chaptef (which is a branch of same), Stamford; he joined the former in 1852, and has served as treasurer for the past thirty-four years, and for nearly as long a period he has held that position in Ivitten- house Chapter. Mr. Leeds is unmarried. He is a man of large social attributes, genial and companionable, possessing a wide circle of^ ac- quaintances, and it is enough to sa}- that to be his acciuaintance is to be his friend. LEAN PAUL MacDONALD, M. D. No citizen of Danbury is better known than this skillful and popular homeopathic physician, who for more than ten years has ministered to the sick and suffering in the locality. The Doctor is of Highland-Scotch descent, and his family is an old one, running back to Somerled of the Isles, in the twelfth century. The family name MacDonald originated from Donald, the grandson of Somerled, whose de- scendants since his time, in all branches, have called themselves MacDonalds. Mac, in the Gaelic language, signifies son, therefore MacDon- ald means son of Donald, Donald signifying "brown eyed." From Somerled the line de- scends, in the eighth generation through Ronald, known as the first Clan Ronald, and from him the line runs through his grandson Allan, second son of Allan MacDonald, the second Clan Ron- ald, who settled in Knoydart, Scotland, in 141 5, and became the progenitor of the Knoydart family of MacDonalds. Twelve generations later a descendant of the same name crossed the ocean in 18 12, and located at the present site of Knoydart, Picton Co., Nova Scotia, the place being named afterward in honor of the old home. The Doctor's father, Alexander MacDonald, son of Allan, the pioneer settler of Knoydart, N. S., was born at that place August 25, 1813, and resided at Antigonish, N. S. , throughout his life following architecture and building as a profes- sion. He married Ann MacDougall, of Hollo- well Grant, Antigonish Co., N. S. He died March 27, 1861. Ann MacDougall was born at Moidart, Scotland, January i, 1815, and through her mother, Marjorie MacDougall, /uU- Mac- C/AurUr^S^^Ji^ COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 241