Alfred William Gifford was born on February 10, 1873, in Montreal, Quebec.
He was a member of the firm Wilson, Patterson, and Gifford for many years before becoming vice-president of Canadian Refractories. Ltd. An avid runner and holder of many records, he was one of the representatives of the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association track teams and also a member of the St. James Club and the Royal Montreal Golf Club.
In 1898, he married May Macfarlane. He died on September 24, 1936, in Salem, Connecticut.
Harold G. Gifford, M.D., was born October 18, 1858, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of Charles and Mary Carolyn (Child) Gifford. Gifford attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, graduating with a B.S. degree in 1879. He continued his education at the University of Michigan, graduating in 1882 with his M.D., specializing in Ophthalmology. Dr. Gifford married Mary Louise Millard on December 30, 1890, in Geneva, Switzerland. Mary Louise Gifford was the daughter of Ezra Millard, an Omaha pioneer banker and land developer; the town of Millard, Nebraska, was named for him. The Giffords had four children: Sanford, Anne, Mary, and Harold Jr. Mary Gifford married and became Mary Von Kaesborg of Redlands, California, and Anne married and became Anne G. Forbes of Redlands, California.
Following a year as an assistant in the Pathology department at Michigan, Gifford did extensive post-graduate work in New York, Vienna, Erlangen, Heidelberg, and Zurich, and then moved to Omaha in 1886. He began his practice as an ophthalmic and aural surgeon in Omaha and soon attained distinction in his specialty. As an educator, Gifford taught at the Omaha Medical College and served that institution as professor of ophthalmology and otology and Dean of the faculty from 1895-1898. From 1903 to 1925, he was a professor of ophthalmology in the College of Medicine of the University of Nebraska and Associate Dean from 1902-1911. Upon his retirement, he was granted the rank of emeritus professor. For many years, he practiced as an ophthalmic surgeon at Methodist Hospital in Omaha and is credited as one of the hospital's founders.
Gifford was a member of the American Medical Association, the Nebraska State Medical Association, the American Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology, the American College of Surgeons, the Omaha Club, Fontenelle Forest Association, and the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. In recognition of his scientific and clinical work, he was granted the honorary degree of M.A. by the University of Michigan and L.L.D. by the University of Nebraska.
Besides his professional work, he found time for a surprising variety of other interests. An early interest in botany and zoology led him to travel extensively. Gifford also contributed to preserving the natural life and beauty of the woods along the Missouri River. Fontenelle Forest and Gifford Farm would develop because of Dr. Gifford's hard work, dedication, and volunteer efforts in Douglas and Sarpy counties in eastern Nebraska. Politically, Dr. Gifford was a socialist and a pacifist. American Legion Post No. 1 of Omaha named Dr. Gifford as Omaha's Most Valuable Citizen of 1927. On Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 1929, Dr. Gifford died at the age of 71 years.
