Background
Elliott was born in Bedford on 25 May 1871 and educated at Bedford Modern School.
Elliott was born in Bedford on 25 May 1871 and educated at Bedford Modern School.
However, Elliott"s main interest was ornithology. Elliott published his first book "The Vertebrate Fauna of Bedfordshire" at his own expense in 1901. In their book, "The Birds of Bedfordshire" (1991), Paul Trodd and David Kramer stated that "the works of Jannion Steele Elliott were our base reference and it is only now that we can appreciate the importance of his writings when comparing the status of species than with those of today."
Elliott developed a large collection of the local birds of Bedfordshire which he gave to the Pritchard Museum of Bedford Modern School which was later to become a key component of the Bedford Museum.
His collection was later transferred to the Luton Museum.
Elliott was a Tring correspondent (1899–1942) and records of his ornithological work are kept in the archives of the Natural History Museum. On 30 July 1925, Elliott married Doris Amie Sheldon.
They lived at Dowles Manor, Bewdley, Worcestershire.