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GIBBONS-NEFF Morton ("Sunny")
Birth:          7 Mar 1913 
Death:          17 Dec 2007 

Notes
1981 book (see for details)
24 Sep 1987 letter from Betty Mitchell
ssn 164 09 2242 issued in Pa, last reside Chestertown, Kent Co., Md.
May 2008 Penn Gazette: Class of 1935, of Chestertown, Md., head of Clovelly Farms, 
a cattle and grain farm on the Chester River, served in US Navy during WW2, 
commanding submarine chasers on the East Coast and in Hawaii.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2007-12-23/news/0712230047_1_gibbons-neff-
chester-river-hospital
Morton Gibbons-Neff Jr., 94
Farmer, avid sailor
December 23, 2007Morton Gibbons-Neff Jr., a world-class sailor who oversaw a 
successful cattle-feeding operation and grain farm on the Eastern Shore, died Dec. 17 
of complications from old age at Chester River Hospital Center. The Chestertown 
resident was 94.

Born in Philadelphia, he attended Montgomery School and grew up sailing sneak 
boxes and E-Scows along New Jersey's Barnegat Bay. He attended the University of 
Pennsylvania before entering the Navy at the beginning of World War II, commanding 
submarine chasers along the East Coast and the Hawaiian islands.

He and his wife bought a farm in Devon, Pa., where he raised purebred Angus cattle. 
In the late 1950s, the family relocated Clovelly Farm to Chestertown, where for 
decades he oversaw a cattle business and grain farm along the Chester River. He was 
also an avid waterfowl hunter.

Known as "Sunny," Mr. Gibbons-Neff's passion was sailing. He competed in numerous 
Bermuda races -- biennial races from Newport, R.I., to Bermuda, a distance of 635 
miles -- and three trans-Atlantic races, winning in his class aboard his 40-foot Owens 
cutter, Prim, in the 1972 race to Spain.

He was a member of many sailing clubs, including the Cruising Club of America, Storm 
Trysail Club, Sailing Club of the Chesapeake, Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club, and the 
Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia. He also served on the Fales Committee of the 
U.S. Naval Academy, which advises the academy about its sailing program.

He supported other groups, including the Franklin Institute of Philadelphia, as his 
father was president of the Philadelphia Poor Richard Club when it pushed for the 
creation of the Franklin Memorial. He was also involved with the American Angus 
Association, the conservation group Ducks Unlimited, the Mystic Seaport Museum and 
the Sea Education Association. He was also a former president of the board of 
directors for Kent and Queen Anne's Hospital, now Chester River Hospital Center.

According to state records, he made an unsuccessful run for a seat in the Maryland 
House of Delegates representing Queen Anne's County in 1962 as a Republican.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Jan. 2 at Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 101 
N. Cross St., in Chestertown.

Survivors include three sons, Morton Gibbons-Neff III of Chestertown, Peter 
Gibbons-Neff of Rosemont, Pa., and Henry Gibbons-Neff of Easton; 11 grandchildren; 
and 10 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife, the former Florence Mitchell Chance; and a 
son, Mitchell Chance Gibbons-Neff.



Who are

Cara Gibbons-Neff 
   
 Class: Junior
 Hometown: Annapolis, MD
 High School: St. Mary's
  Position: Crew
  Birthdate: 05/24/1982
 
Career: 2001-02: Perfromed well on the water throughout her sophomore year ... Her A 
boat finished third at the Tom Curtis regatta ... Part of the first place squad at the 
MAISA Women’s and both Navy Intersectionals ... Took second at the Dellenbaugh 
Women’s race and St. Mary’s regattas ... Member of the A division crew that helped 
win the National Championship ... 2000-01:Had a strong first year for the Monarch 
sailing team...Crewed for the winning A division team at the St. Mary’s Women’s 
Intersectional and the third place Washington College Women’s and MAISA Women’s 
squads...Also crewed for the second place A team at the NY Maritime Open...Member 
of ODU’s ICSA Women’s Championship squad, which finished sixth. 

Personal: Born May 24, 1982...Daughter of Jeffrey Gibbons-Neff and Patricia 
Durkin...Has three sisters, Katie (25), Annie (11), and Mary Alice (8), along with 
brothers Sean (23), Seamus (21), and Charlie (10)...Thinks Mitch (Brindley) is the most 
impressive person she has ever met ... Major is English with emphasis on creative 
writing. 
 [see notes under Henry Gibbons-Neff. She is dtr of a cousin of Florence's children]

Shannon R Gibbons-Neff 1 Jan 2000 Stonington Conn md William D Becker, she 33 
(1967) he 30 (1970)
Samantha A Gibbons-Neff 14 May 1996 New London Conn md Roland Collins she 51 
(b 1945), he 57 (b 1939)
from Ct Marr Idx

obit of Phyllis Barba Gibbons-Neff, wife of Grellet Gibbons-Neff (brother of Morton?), 
children Sewall, Hornsey (John), Jeffrey (Leslie), Emily (Wargo), Julie (David Cox)

Parents
GIBBONS-NEFF Morton ()
COLLINS Dorothy Newell ()

Siblings
GIBBONS-NEFF Morton ("Sunny") (7 Mar 1913 - 17 Dec 2007)

Marriage To CHANCE Florence Mitchell (25 Oct 1914 - 28 Apr 2002) m. 3 Jun 1937 Notes Parents CHANCE Thomas Mitchell (4 Aug 1887 - 1 Sep 1933) HAAG Florence (7 Dec 1885 - 30 May 1943) Children by CHANCE Florence Mitchell 25 Oct 1914 - 28 Apr 2002
GIBBONS-NEFF Morton ("Tony") () GIBBONS-NEFF Mitchell Chance ("Chance") ("Mitch") (4 May 1941 - 4 Feb 2007) GIBBONS-NEFF Peter (20 Dec 1945 - 20 Jan 2013) GIBBONS-NEFF Henry ()
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