Elery Sterling Mills

"Elery Sterling Mills was born Nov 14, 1904, in North Rose NY, the son of Robert James Mills and Mary Magdalena (Lena) Moyer Mills. His parents emigrated from Ontario Canada in 1896 and settled in North Rose; Elery would keep in touch with his Canadian family throughout the years.

When Elery was about fifteen years old his family moved to Lyons for a year and then back to North Rose where he attended the North Rose School building located on Gray St. His future wife was a neighbor on Main Street and her family moved back to Rochester. Elery would follow and he and Leona Failey were married Nov 26, 1925, in that city. Elery drove a laundry truck and then moved on to the Eastman Kodak Company during this time in Rochester.

As a side note, Leona contracted TB and was a patient in Iola Sanitarium, now the Rochester Community Hospital, for thirteen months.

After the birth of their sons, Bruce and Donald, they returned to North Rose in the late thirties. Eventually they purchased a home at 21 North Poplar St. and raised their family there, which then included daughter Sandra.

Leona passed December 7, 1969. Her funeral service was the last one held in the North Rose Presbyterian Church before its closure. On July 26, 1975, Elery married Helen Halstead Booram of Dundee and moved to Himrod, NY, where they maintained a home on Seneca Lake until he passed on their tenth anniversary, July 26, 1985. He is buried with Leona in the Rose Cemetery.

The family were very active members of the North Rose Presbyterian Church until it closed in 1969. Elery was also very involved in several organizations including the North Rose Fire Department, Wolcott Elks Lodge, Wayne County Chiefs Association, North Rose Lions Club, Rose Grange and Masonic Lodge No. 590. He served as the Town Justice and as a member of the Rose Town Board.

Elery was kindhearted, gentle and enjoyed being part of the community. He loved playing cards; he and Leona had Saturday night pinochle parties with good friends John and Edra Jensen, Abe and Lu Guthrie, Harold and Alta Wilcox and Ed and Lois Anthony. Many hands of Euchre were also played during slow times at the North Rose Cold Storage.

I might add, Elery's father Robert was a charter member of the North Rose Chemical Co. founded in 1915. Firefighting was, and continues to be, a great part of our family including my brothers Bruce (member NRFD and transferred to the East Williamson FD), Donald (NRFD and transferred to the Wolcott FD) and Uncle Glenn Mills, to include his two sons Glenn Jr. and Robert. Currently (2026), my grandsons Dalton Bean and Dakota Anderson are members of the NRFD; Dalton's grandfather Harold Bean was also an active member of the NRFD."