David G. Ely was born on April 17, 1803 in Lyme, New London County, Connecticut. He was the son of Josiah Ely and Elizabeth Sill. He married Ruth Marvin on October 9, 1833 in Palmyra, New York. To their union was born one son, David Huntington Ely.
On December 4, 1833, David G. Ely signed the “Testimony of 51 Neighbors,” later printed in Mormonism Unvailed.[1] He died on December 8, 1845 in Iowa City, Johnson County, Iowa.
[1] Howe, Mormonism Unvailed, pp. 366–367.