Family:Whitney, Elias (1716-1810)

Elias⁴ Whitney (Jonathan³, Benjamin², John¹), son of Jonathan³ and Susannah (Fairbanks) Whitney, was born 14 Nov 1716, Sherborn, MA,^[1] and died 29 Jul 1810, Milford, MA, aged 93-3/4 years, of old age,^[2] or Bellingham, MA, aged 94 years.^[3]

He married firstly, 6 Feb 1745/6, Holliston, MA, Elizabeth Mellen,^[4] daughter of James and Abigail (Sanderson) Mellen. She was born 21 Aug 1721, Framingham, MA, and died before Jun 1774. Since her husband remarried in June of 1774, she died before then, but no record found in either Holliston or Mendon (where he remarried).

He married secondly, 26 Jun 1774, Mendon, MA, Elizabeth (Rice) Boyden, both "of Mendon", by Rev. A. Frost,^[5] daughter of Gershom and Esther (Haynes) Rice. She was born 21 Feb 1726/7, Worcester, MA, and probably was the nameless Whitney wife who died 10 Jul 1807, Milford, MA, aged 70 years.^[6] She had married firstly, John Boyden (1719-1773).

Pierce says the following:^[7]

He resided in Holliston, near the eastern boundry. He was in Framingham in 1764, when James HEYWOOD deeded him the homestead now owned by his great-grandson, Elias WHITNEY. He was of reputable standing in the plain old-fashioned society of the times.

Children of Elias⁴ and Elizabeth (Mellen) Whitney:

i.	Abigail5 Whitney, b. 19 Mar 1747, Holliston, MA;[8] m. 12 Jan 1768, Dorchester, MA, Robert Merrifield,[9] son of Robert and Mary (Stanton) Merrifield.
ii.	Elias Whitney, Jr., b. 15 Jun 1750, Holliston, MA;[10] bapt. 1 Jul 1750, Milford, MA;[11] m. Lucy Barnes.
iii.	Ann Mellens Whitney, b. 1 Jun 1753, Holliston, MA;[12] bapt. 3 Jun 1753, Medway, MA.[13]
iv.	Jonathan Whitney, b. 25 Jan 1760, Framingham, MA;[14] d. 2 Feb 1780; in Revolutionary War, serving under Capt. Drew.

Elias⁴ and Elizabeth (Boyden) Whitney had no children.

Census

• 1771, Mendon, MA (tax list): Elias Whitney
• 1790, Milford, Worcester Co., MA: Elias Whitney, 2 males over 16 and 2 females.
• 1800, Milford, Worcester Co., MA: Elias Whitney, 1 male over 45 and 1 female over 45.
• 1810: not found.

References

1.^  "Elias [Whitney], s. of Jonathan and Susanna, [born] Nov. 14, 1716," according to Thomas W. Baldwin, ed., Vital Records of Sherborn, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1911).

2.^  "Elias [Whitney], [died] July 29, 1810. (a. 93 3/4 y. Old age. C.R.)," according to Thomas W. Baldwin, ed., Vital Records of Milford, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1917).

3.^  "Elias [Whitne], [died] July 29, [1810], a. 94. P.R.1," according to Vital Records of Bellingham, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1903), p. 220.

4.^  "Elias [Whitney] and Elisabeth Mellen, [married] Feb. 6, 1745-6 [Elizebeth, M.R.]," according to Vital Records of Holliston, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1908).

5.^  "Elias [Whitney] and Elizabeth Boyden, [married] June 26, 1774," according to Thomas W. Baldwin, ed., Vital Records of Mendon, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1920). Also "Elias [Whitney] and Elisabeth Boyden, both of Mendon, [married] June 26, 1774. C.R.," according to Milford Vital Records.

6.^  "_____ [Whitney], w. of _____, [died] July 10, 1807. a. 70y. C.R.," according to Milford Vital Records.

7.^  Frederick C. Pierce, The Descendants of John Whitney, Who Came from London, England, to Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1635 (Chicago, IL: The Author, 1895), p. 63.

8.^  "Abigail [Whitney], d. Elias and Elisabeth, [born] Mar. 19, 1747," according to Holliston Vital Records.

9.^  "Abigail [Whitney] and Robert Merrifield, both of Dorchester, [married] Jan. 12, 1768," according to Registry Department of the City of Boston, Vital Records of the Town of Dorchester from 1826 to 1849, vol. 36 (Boston, MA: Rockwell and Churchill, 1905), p. 230.

10.^  "Elias [Whitney], s. Elias and Elisabeth, [born] June 15, 1750," according to Holliston Vital Records.

11.^  "Elias, s. of Elias and ______, bp. July 1, 1750. C.R.," according to Milford Vital Records.

12.^  "Annrillen [Whitney], d. Elias and Elisabeth, [born] June 1, 1753," according to Holliston Vital Records.

13.^  "Ann Mellens [Whitney], d. Elias, bp. June 3, 1753. C.R.2," according to Vital Records of Medway, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1905).

14.^  "Jonathan [Whitney], s. of Elias and Elesabeth, [born] Jan. 25, 1760," according to Vital Records of Framingham, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1911).

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