Blacks@Dartmouth 1775 to 1960

Roy Alexander Ellis, 85, a retired labor relations specialist at the Labor Department who later joined his wife in founding DeWalt's, a children's clothing store in Washington, died of a heart ailment Nov. 5 at Holy Cross Hospital. Mr. Ellis, a resident of Adelphi, was born in McDonald, Pa. He moved to Washington as a youth and graduated from Dunbar High School. He attended Dartmouth College and earned a bachelor's degree at Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y. He earned a law degree at the Terrell Law School in Washington.

From 1925 to 1950, Mr. Ellis worked for the Labor Department. When he retired, he spent a year in Liberia as a representative of the International Labor Organization. He and his wife, the former Ida DeWalt Delaney, opened DeWalt's on Georgia Avenue NW. They operated the store until 1973, when they retired and sold it.

Mr. Ellis was a member of the Episcopal Church of Our Saviour in Washington. His marriage to the former Marguerite Steward ended in divorce. In addition to his wife, of Adelpi, and their son, Patrick C. Ellis of Mitchellville, Md., survivors include a son by his first marriage, Roy M. Ellis of Washington, and three grandchildren.