1917 Ely Family Portrait

On August 30, 1917, Hiram Ely graduated from West Point and got married—all on the same day! His parents and all of his brothers and sisters travelled to West Point for this special occasion. It was probably not often that the entire family were gathered together at the same time and place. As Hiram was the second youngest of the children, most of his brothers and sisters were already married and had children of their own. They took this opportunity to have the family photographed. 

It was a photograph the family came to treasure, as within 11 years three will have passed away. The first was Addison Jr who in January 1920 is taken ill and hospitalized but dies after an operation, aged 44.^[1]

Then in November 1927, Seth dies aged 43 from a cerebral hemorrhages brought on, the doctors believed, by overwork.^[2] Four months later, Addison Sr dies unexpectly at the aged of 74.

Unfortunately, the image below is not good quality because it is a scan of an old paper photocopy and not of the photograph itself.

The Ely Family: Addison & Emily Ely and their ten children
West Point, August 30, 1917 
Back row: Harvey, Addison, Jr., Leon, Mabel, Seth, Emily, Dana.
Front row: James, Clara, Addison (father), Emily (mother), Hiram. 

Published: 16 July 2023