Delford was the son of William Hayes Bradford and Maude Olive Chapman, who married on 30 Apr 1887 in Marshall Co., Indiana. Together they brought fifteen children into the world, no twins among them. Their children were: Gertrude (c.1888 died in infancy), Bithiah Alice (22 Jul 1889), named after her maternal grandmother Bithiah Chapman, Ethel Fern (17 Jul 1891), Delpha Ann (4 Jun 1893), Ghern Clark (8 Dec 1895), Delford Monroe (24 Dec 1897), Carl Elvin (31 Aug 1900), Carrie Lillian (25 May 1902), Lucy May (30 Mar 1904), Walter Bliss (15 Jun 1905), Emma Arlou (13 Nov 1907), Dorothy August (15 Aug 1909), William Henry (28 Dec 1911), Wayne Loren (11 Sep 1914), and the baby of the family, daughter Bertha Pauline (9 Aug 1917).

The 1890 Census would have given us our first glimpse of the family, but it is lost, so fast forward to the 1900 Census. The family was living in Argos, Walnut Township, Marshall Co., Indiana, a small town about midway between Culver and Etna Green on Indiana 10, just east of US Route 31. Hayes (seemed to prefer over William) Bradford, aged 38, was noted simply as a laborer. Maude, aged 27, reported that she had had six children, but that only five had survived to that census. There with their parents were Bithiah, aged 10, Ethel, aged 8, Delpha, aged 6, Ghern, aged 4, and Delford, aged 2. When that census was enumerated, Maude was seven months pregnant with son Carl who arrived on August 31st. Living with the family was Maude's 68-year-old widowed mother Bithiah Chapman.

In 1908, the family moved. (From: The Argos Reflector, Argos, IN – Thu 11 Jun 1908 "Hayes Bradford moved into the Simons property on east Walnut street last week." A year later, they moved again. (From: The Argos Reflector – Thu 25 Mar 1909 "Hayes Bradford has moved to Walkerton where he has employment on the B. & O."

The 1910 Census placed the family in Walkerton, Lincoln Township, St. Joseph Co., Indiana. William Bradford, aged 45, was working as a fireman for the railroad. It was his job to feed the steam engine with fuel. Maude, aged 38, reported that she had had twelve children, eleven still living. There with their parents were Ethel, aged 18, Ghern, aged 16, Delford, aged 13, Carl, aged 11, Lillian, aged 9, Lucy, aged 7, Walter, aged 5, Emma, aged 2, and Dorothy, aged 8 months.

Three months after that census, Delford fell ill and died on 29 Mar 1913. He was only 15 years old.