Family:Whitney, Gershom (s1729-1791)

Gershom⁴ Whitney (Joshua³, Benjamin², John¹) son of Joshua³ and Hannah (Rockett) Whitney,^[1] was born about 1729, probably Mendon or Uxbridge, MA,^[2] and died before 27 Jul 1791, Weathersfield, VT.^[3]

Marriage intentions were published 8 Nov 1750, Woodstock, CT, for Gersham Whitney "of Woodstock" and Sarah WOOD "of Mendon".^[4]

He, "of Woodstock," CT, married firstly, 21 Mar 1751, Mendon, MA, Sarah Wood,^[5] daughter of James and Grace (Thayer) Wood.^[6] She was born 6 Sep 1732, Mendon, MA,^[7] and died 12 Jan 1770, Ware, MA.^[8]

He married secondly, (intentions 19 Nov 1771), Ware, MA, Bathsheba (Thayer) Jackson,^[9] daughter of Isaac and Miriam (Thayer) Thayer, and widow of Joseph Jackson.^[10] She was born 16 Nov 1738, Bellingham, MA,^[11] and died after 5 Sep 1800.^[12] She, "of Mendon", had married firstly, 8 May 1760, Uxbridge, MA, Joseph Jackson "of Uxbridge".^[13] She married thirdly, after 1791, ----- Leet.^[14]

He lived in Mendon, Uxbridge, Woodstock (CT), Palmer, Upton, Ware, Brookfield, and Weathersfield (VT). For details of his life, see an article about his father and the latter's descendants.^[15]

He is listed in Ware, MA, at the taking of the Massachusetts Tax Valuation List of 1771:^[16]

Name: Whitney, Gersham

Town: Ware

Polls Ratable: 1

Polls Not Ratable: 0

House & Shop: 1

Annual Worth of Real Estate: £6

Horses: 1

Oxen: 2

Cattle: 3

Goats/Sheep: 13

Swine: 3

Acres of Pasture: 0

Cows Accommodated by Pasture: 0

Acres of Tillage: 8

Bushels Per Year Grain: 48

Barrels Per Year Cider: 0

Acres of Mowing Land: 0

Tons Per Year Hay: 0

Acres of Fresh Meadow: 12

Tons Per Year Hay: 12

Other: --

Children of Gershom⁴ and Sarah (Wood) Whitney:

i.	Sarah5 Whitney, b. 2 Mar 1752, Woodstock, CT;[17] m. Jonathan Flagg.
ii.	(child) Whitney, b. after 5 Feb 1754, Uxbridge, MA; b. before 6 May 1754, Upton, MA; d. before 6 May 1754, Upton, MA.[18]
iii.	Gershom Whitney, b. 4 Feb 1757, Palmer, MA;[19] d. between 20 Nov 1777 and 30 Nov 1777, Valley Forge, PA, at age 20; while a soldier in the Revolutionary War.[20]
iv.	Josiah Whitney, b. 23 Jun 1760, Palmer, MA;[21] d. before 10 Nov 1792, apparently without issue.[22]
v.	Hezekiah Whitney, b. 4 Nov 1762, Palmer, MA;[23] d. before 10 Nov 1792, apparently without issue.[24]
vi.	Hannah Whitney, b. 20 Aug 1765, Palmer, MA;[25] m. Eli Gilbert.
vii.	Ezekiel Whitney, b. circa 1767;[26] d. 2 Sep 1778, Upton, MA; aged about 11 years.[27]

Children of Gershom⁴ and Bathsheba (Thayer)(Jackson) Whitney:

i.	Mercy5 Whitney, b. 22 May 1780, Brookfield, MA;[28] m. Amos Ball.
ii.	Polly Whitney, b. circa 1782;[29] d. after 10 Nov 1792.[30] It is very likely that she is the Polly Whitney who m. 24 Jul 1803, Weathersfield, VT, Augustus Babcock, both of Weathersfield.[31] He m.(2) bef. 1847, Parmelia Dike. Children: a. Fidella Babcock, b. 20 Mar 1804, Springfield, VT. b. Dennison Whitney Babcock, b. 4 Aug 1805, Springfield, VT.

Census

• 1771, Ware, MA (tax list): Gershom Whitney
• 1791, Weathersfield, Windsor Co., VT: Wid^o Barsheba Whitney, 1 male 0-15, and 3 females.

References

1.^  His parentage is proven by deeds and the probate of his brother.

2.^  The date is an estimate based on his marriage date and the birth dates of his siblings.

3.^  Windsor, Vt., Probate District 2:54-57, 158.

4.^  "Gersham [Whitney] of Woodstock & Sarah WOOD, of Mendon, int. pub. 8 Nov 1750," according to the Barbour Collection of Connecticut Vital Records, Woodstock 2-M:8.

5.^  "Gershom [Whitney] of Woodstock, and Sarrah Wood, [married] Mar. 21, 1751," according to Thomas W. Baldwin, ed., Vital Records of Mendon, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1920), pp. 429-430. Also see Frederick W. Bailey, ed., Early Massachusetts Marriages Prior to 1800 (1897-1914), 3 vols.

6.^  Her parentage is proven by her birth record.

7.^  "Wood, Sarah, d. of James and Grace, [born] Sept. 6, 1732," according to Mendon Vital Records, p. 219.

8.^  Ware, Mass., Congregational Church Records, unpublished, Young Men's Library Association, Ware, p. 224 (examined by Claude W. Barlow, F.A.S.G.).

9.^  Vital Records of Ware, Massachusetts [original], 1:207.

10.^  This identification is not proven. The only Bathsheba Jackson of the proper age that I could locate is Bathsheba Thayer, who married Joseph Jackson. She was a double first cousin of his first wife, Sarah Wood.

11.^  If the identification is correct, her parentage is proven by her birth record.

12.^  "Bathsheba [Thayer], d. Isaac and Miriam, [born] Nov. 16, 1738," Vital Records of Bellingham, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1903), p. 63.

13.^  "Bathsheba [Thayer] of Mendon (of Uxbridge, int.), and Joseph Jackson (of Mendon, int.), [married] May 8, 1760," according to Thomas W. Baldwin, ed., Vital Records of Uxbridge, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: 1916), p. 264.

14.^  This marriage is revealed by deeds in Weathersfield, VT.

15.^  Ward, Robert Leigh, "The Footloose Joshua³ Whitney (1687-1771) and Some of His Descendants," TAG, vol. 74 (1999), pp. 197-207.

16.^  Bettye Hobbs Pruit, The Massachusetts Tax Valuation List of 1771 (Rockport, Maine: Picton, Press, 1998).

17.^  Vital Records of Woodstock, 1686-1854 (Hartford, 1914), p. 101. Also, "Sarah [Whitney], d. Gershom & Sarah, b. 2 Mar 1752," according to the Barbour Collection of Connecticut Vital Records, Woodstock 2:15.

18.^  Worcester County, Massachusetts, Warnings, 1737-1788 (Boston, 1899), p. 43.

19.^  "Garsham [Whittnes], s. Gorsham and Sarah, [born] Feb. 4, 1757," according to Vital Records of Palmer, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850 (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1905), p. 83.

20.^  Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War, 17 vols. (Boston, 1896-1908), 17:219-220.

21.^  "Hannah [Whittne], d. Garsham and Sarah, [born] Aug. 20, 1765," according to Palmer Vital Records, p. 83.

22.^  Neither he nor his heirs were mentioned in the distribution of his father's estate.

23.^  "Hezekiah [Whittne], s. Gorsham and Sarah, [born] Nov. 4, 1762," according to Palmer Vital Records, p. 83.

24.^  Neither he nor his heirs were mentioned in the distribution of his father's estate.

25.^  "Josiah [Whittne], s. Gorsham and Sarah, [born] June 23, 1760," according to Palmer Vital Records, p. 83.

26.^  The date is calculated from his age at death.

27.^  "Ezekiel [Whitney], s. Gershom, [died] Sept. 2, 1778, a. about 11y.," according to Franklin P. Rice, ed., Vital Records of Upton, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849 (1904), p. 186,

28.^  A family record in possession of Wilsey descendants.

29.^  This date is estimated based on the order of mention of the last two daughters when her father was warned out.

30.^  She was apparently unmarried when she was mentioned in the distribution of her father's estate.

31.^  Vermont, Vital Records Index, Marriages.

---

Copyright © 2006, 2011, 2014, Robert L. Ward and the Whitney Research Group.