Very interesting document. Thank you for posting the link.

In 1904 James Kelley's grandson, Robert Morgan Kelley (1829-1911), sketched his grandfather's genealogy and wrote of his memories of Kelley's Cove. The original document is in the possession of the Webster family of Yarmouth. I have reproduced it, and you can download it here:

http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/stewarts/kelley/memories.pdf

The debate about James Kelley's ancestry has been ongoing for over a century. His grandson Robert Kelley and noted genealogist of the time, George S. Brown, suggested he was of English origin, but there is a case to be made that he may have been of Irish descent. James' headstone is inscribed KILLAY, a spelling which also appears in the early records of Chebogue.

The maiden name of James' mother Sarah is also unconfirmed. Some sources - including her grandson - say she was born Sarah Pierce, but the Manchester vital records make a compelling case that she was Sarah Allen. What is not disputed is that she is the Sarah Leech who died in Kelley's Cove in 1802 and is buried in Chebogue Cemetery. Alas, her headstone does not settle the debate.

If James' mother was Sarah Allen of Manchester, then there is strong circumstantial evidence suggesting that James' father died when he was young, perhaps even in infancy. Much of this debate has been covered previously in this thread, so it is worth reading back through the posts.