Family:Whitney, Isaac L. (1794-1834)

Isaac L. Whitney (Whitneys of SC..., Samuel¹), was born 1775-1794,^[1] probably in South Carolina, and died 10 June 1834, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma).^[2]

He married, in The Cherokee Nation East (Alabama), about 1828, Elizabeth "Betsey" Thompson, daughter of John "Jack" Thompson and Elizabeth Murrell. She was born about 1814, in The Cherokee Nation East (Alabama), and died about 1851, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma).^[3]

Although Isaac's parentage has not yet been identified, DNA analysis has shown that he is a descendant of or otherwise genetically related to Samuel¹ Whitney of Bermuda. Isaac L. had a brother named Hiram C. Whitney.

nunahi-duna-dlo-hilo-i --"the trail where they cried"

Sometime in March or April, 1834, Isaac Whitney, his pregnant wife Betsey, and, at least two, probably three children, boarded the Steamship, Thomas Yeatman, at Guntersville Landing, on the Tennessee River, in Alabama, bound for what was called the " new country" (Indian Territory). Their emigration was completely voluntarily. The long journey quickly turned into a nightmare complete with epidemics of Cholera and Measles. Lt. J.W. Harris, Army Escort for this traveling group, duly made the following note in his journal: Betsey Whitney (3) arrived May 16, 1834, two died on the way. One birth, June 9, 1834. Isaac S. Whitney June 10, 1834 Arrived--DEAD.^[4]

The Cherokee Emigration Rolls 1819-1835 list the Isaac Whitney Family: ^[5] One male 25-50 One female 10-25 One male under 10 One female under 10

Following the death of Isaac Whitney, his widow married (about 1835) Robert Runyan. The older children Marien Joseph Whitney and Ruth Whitney are later, on the Dawes Final Rolls (1895), referred to as Joseph Runyan and Ruth Runyan, both noted as "dead, no issue". ^[6]A review of all collected data for the Whitney, Thompson, and Runyan Families strongly suggest that these 2 people are definitely the children who removed from Alabama to Indian Territory with their parents Isaac and Betsey Whitney.

Children of Isaac L. and Betsy (Thompson) Whitney:

i.	Marien Joseph Whitney, b. 1829, Alabama, d. aft 1850.
ii.	Ruth Whitney, b. 1830, Alabama, d. before 1890.
iii.	(child) Whitney, b. 1832, Alabama, d. April-May, 1834 "died on the way" to Indian Territory via The River Trail
iv.	Mariah Whitney, b. 9 June, 1834 Indian Territory, d. after 1900, married (----) Gore/Goree. [7]

Census

• 1820, St Matthews Parish, Orangeburg Co., SC: Isaac L. Whitney, 1 male 26-45, 1 male 16-18, 1 female over 45, 2 females 10-16, 9 people engaged in agriculture, 2 male slaves 26-45, 1 male slave 14-26, 3 male slaves under 14, 2 female slaves over 45, 2 female slaves 26-45, 2 female slaves under 14.
• 1850, Walker County, AL: "Marien Whitney", living in the household of Thomas Reed and Minerva (Jones-Whitney) Reed.

References

1. ^  Age range taken from the 1820 Census, St. Matthews, Orangeburg County, South Carolina

2. ^  Noble, Jane B. (year unknown) The River Trail: The Saga of the Cherokee Removal, Park Hall, Oklahoma Cultural Center.

3. ^  Starr, Emmett (1921) History of the Cherokee Indians p.454-456 Thompson Family

4. ^  Noble, Jane B. (year unknown) The River Trail: The Saga of the Cherokee Removal, Park Hall, Oklahoma Cultural Center.

5. ^ Ibid

6. ^ Baker, Jack D., Cherokee Emigration Rollls, 1817-1835, p. 48.

7. ^ NARA Microfilm T985, Roll 2, PMT ROll for Old Cherokee Settlers 1895, p. 372.

8. ^  Ibid

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Copyright © 2007, Tara Bellomy and the Whitney Research Group.