**Dear Ted: I have a copy of Jacob SAYLOR's ( 1746-1816 ) Last Will & Testament dated June 1, 1816 in which he mentions his two daughters...Fannah DILLEY wife to Asa DILLEY and Mary DILLEY wife to David DILLEY...so I would say that as early as 1816 ( and probably much earlier ) the name was spelled DILLEY. Jack R. Saylor

**Ted, On my line it seems that after my Grandpa Nehemiah DILLE died (1899) all of his children went to the DILLEY version, as his son Sylvester said that it was because of problems with the mail delivery and because of the pronunciation. All of Nehemiah's children but William Morton DILLE went to the ÔyÕ version. This Dille family was in Missouri!    Sharron

**In correspondence I have from both Abner Dilley and from Charity Ella Dilley Allen, they both spelled the name DILLEY. However, I notice that on the Ohio Census it was sometimes even spelled Dillon instead of Dilley. I do know that Abner was well versed in writing and reading, but don't know if this spelling was passed down to him or he changed to it to Americanize it. Thanks. Sandie Kane

**Henry Dilley's (son of John Jr. and Elizabeth (Acklin/Ackland) Dilley) Estate, found in Gallia Co., OH Wills and Estates, 10 April 1815, lists the last name as DELAY. Lynnea Dickinson

**My great grandfather was Jacob Dilley born 1847-Nicholas Co., VA. My grandfather was Albert Dilly born 1874. We have used the Dilly name since. Carol Dilly Gunnoe

**A fellow Dilley researcher that I correspond with, who is not on-line, sent me this explanation of the Dille/Dilley spelling: "The first known Dille in the United States was John Dille, who settled on Staten Island. In 1669, 57 men founded Woodbridge, New Jersey and drew lots. John Dille drew a 94 acre lot on Papiack Creek. Although he was only 24 years old at this time, he was of considerable standing in the community. John and his wife Sarah were Presbyterians, a tradition that has been carried down through the family line. John and Sarah had four children - Susannah, Sara, John Jr., and Jonathan, all of which were born at Woodbridge. It was John Jr's son David, who became known as the family matriarch of the Dille/Dilley families migrating westward. He and his wife Mary were among the 23 people who organized the Upper Ten Mile Presbyterian Church and Morris Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania in 1781 and 1788. David's four sons, Aaron, Caleb, Samuel and John settled on what is now Belmont County, Ohio in 1790. With the surrounding land of the Ohio Valley it became known as Dille's Bottom. The migration of these first Dilles westward helped make it possible for the other family members fo follow. We are descendents of John's fourth child, Jonathan. He and his wife Hannah lived on the Rahway in Woodbridge, on land adjoining that of his brother, John Jr. Jonathan added the Y to the Dilley name, because of the mispronunciation of the name and the mix-up with the mail. His brother John Jr. kept the original spelling of the name without the Y." Jean Woodworth

**Random thoughts on spelling from Ohio: In 1810 tax enumeration for Belpre, Washington County Ohio we have Dilly (No "e" at all) Richard and Joseph. In 1811 enumeration for Belpre we have John, Joseph and Richard Dilley with "e" intact. In 1827 enumeration for Belpre we have Joseph and John Dilley. We also have multiple spellings of several other surnames on those same lists so I figure they were just a bit more relaxed than we are about that sort of thing. (If any of you have French ancestry you know just HOW creative spelling can get) A good overview of Dille/Dilleys in Ohio is in "Our Ellenwood Clan" by Nellie Ataline Gard. She quotes George Dille's "The Dille Family 300 Years in America" and describes the same migration in the message below. It is also in Brant and Fuller's multivolume "History of the Upper Ohio Valley. Ms. Gard found both spellings on land grants and DAR records from the 1790-1810 period. Mostly Dille appears for the family described below that migrated into Belmont County. It does appear that my Belpre Dilleys are NOT related to the Belmont county Dille/Dilley's described below. They came to Ohio from Virginia before 1810, always had a Y on the end of the name and appear to be completely separate. I also have fragments of some research by Don Dilley on the Virginia Dilleys and "Dille" isn't even on the radar screen. Carole Roddy

**Ted: Could have been Asa DILLE's (1755-1842) son, Asa DILLE b. 1784...but not sure...Asa & his brother David (1753-1835) left Washington Co. PA circa 1803 & settled in Euclid, Cuyahoga Co. OH.    Jack

**My line comes through the Ohio Valley/ Dille Bottoms line - Caleb. In researching I have found that documents and Bible records are recorded as Dille and sometimes Dillee. After migrating to Indiana, Caleb's great grandson, Eli was in the Civil War - mustered in 1862 & out 1865, as Eli H. Dille, however his pension & burial records, & headstone are Dilley. All of his descendants have continued with the Dilley spelling also. (His marriage license to Martha Ellen Thomas is spelled Dille, 1865) I always attributed the name change to the military spelling, as his family continued to receive disability pension - recorded as Dilley. Interesting to hear all of the stories.   -Kim Dilley

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