Elledge, who was 83, died at Cayuga Medical Center Dec. 23. His association with Cornell was a long one, for he received his M.A. degree in English here in 1936 and his Ph.D. in 1941. After positions elsewhere -- chiefly at Carleton College, where he served for many years as chair of the English department -- he returned to Cornell in 1962, retiring in 1984.
To the general public, Elledge is best known for two books published in his later years: E.B. White: A Biography, published in 1984, and Wider than the Sky (1990), a collection of poetry he edited for children.
Elledge's earlier writing was devoted to 16th and 17th century literature.
He is also known as one of the founders of the Salzburg Seminar in Austria. Following World War II, Elledge, then an instructor at Harvard, and two students gathered enough financial support to institute the seminar in a war-ravaged castle.
Young Europeans of various political convictions from all the warring nations were invited to attend the first session in 1947 as a means of fostering the spiritual and intellectual healing that Elledge and his companions felt to be at least as important as the rebuilding of the physical structures damaged by the war.
As part of the celebration of its 50th anniversary this past summer, the Salzburg Seminar invited Elledge to return. It was there that he gave his final public address.
Elledge is survived by his wife, Liane; and by two brothers and two sisters.
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