Family:Whitney, Jacob (1790-1863)
Jacob6 Whitney (Roswell5, David4, David3, Joshua2, John1), son of Roswell5 and Phebe (Ellsworth) Whitney, was born 18 Aug 1790, New Paltz, NY, and died said Sep 1863, Jonesville, Hillsdale Co., MI. He was buried in Litchfield Cemetery, Hillsdale Co., NY.
He married firstly, Minerva Gillette. She died before 1850.
He married secondly, before 1850, Sally -----. She was born circa 1790, NY, and died 17 Jun 1860, Jonesville, MI.
Children of Jacob6 and Minerva (Gillette) Whitney (probably incomplete):
i. (daughter)7 Whitney, b. 1815-1820. ii. Genett Whitney or Janet Whitney, b. 1818; m. Andrew Kelsey Bushnell, b. 26 Oct 1811, Durham, NY, son of Constant and Rhoda (Baldwin) Bushnell. - "ANDREW K. BUSHNELL, Litchfield's oldest living pioneer, looked upon the face of the country of this section in its undeveloped state, and before the labors of the white man had hardly begun to relieve it from its primitive condition. His arrival dates back to the spring of 1833, and he located within the limits of what is now Litchfield Township, upon a tract of wild land, where he began to clear away the forest and prepare the soil for cultivation. His neighbors were few and far between, and his toils and struggles were similar to those of many another of that time, and which have been fully written of throughout this volume. He brought a wide stretch of soil to a good state of cultivation, put up barns and other out-buildings, and erected one of the most commodious and handsome residences in this region. He is now widely and favorably known throughout Hillsdale County, as one whom its citizens delight to honor.
- "Our subject began life in Durham Township, Greene Co., N. Y., Oct. 26, 1811. He was the fifth child of Constant and Rhoda (Baldwin) Bushnell ....
- "The boy-hood and youth of our subject were spent in Madison County, N. Y., where he acquired a common-school education, and worked with his father as mason and farmer until reaching his majority. The former business was distasteful, and he accordingly abandoned it, turning his attention exclusively to agricultural pursuits. Upon leaving home he made his way to the vicinity of Rochester, where he worked on a farm one year, and in the fall of 1833 made his first advent into the Territory of Michigan, taking up his abode for a brief time in Washtenaw County. He soon, however, resumed his journey westward, passing through Homer down the St. Joseph River Valley, traversed St. Joseph County, and continued on to Sturgis Prairie, eastward into Indiana, where he spent the winter of 1833-34; then returning via the Chicago turnpike to Jonesville, this county, he went up to Homer again, and while passing through that section encountered Henry Stephens, who was putting up the first log house erected in what is now the flourishing town of Litchfield.
- "Young Bushnell secured employment with the farmers of Homer and Eckford during most of that summer, and later borrowed an ox-team and
[p. 747] wagon, which he loaded with lumber for the purpose of putting up a house for himself when he should find a desirable location; this he finally selected on section 9, in Litchfield Township, where he put up, in the fall of 1834, the structure which sheltered him and his family thereafter for a period of four years. He first had to clear away the trees and brush for his dwelling, and then prepared four or five acres for the sowing of his fall wheat. This was harvested by Mr. Riblet, who came to this section in the spring of 1835, and made this business a specialty. Mr. Bushnell realized a fair yield from his first sowing in Litchfield Township. During that fall he returned to his native State, where he remained a period of a year, and when coming back to this county was accompanied by his father, sister and brother, the balance of the family joining them in the spring of 1836. They all lived together in the new house, and to this our subject brought a bride in the early part of 1837, having been married in January of that year to Miss Janet Whitney, whose parents came to this county in the year 1836.
- "Mrs. Bushnell was born June 26, 1818, in New York State, and is the daughter of Jacob and Minerva Whitney, who, upon coming to the Territory of Michigan, settled first in Washtenaw County. Mrs. Whitney died there, and Mr. W. having married again, he and his wife came to this county, and to Litchfield Township, where they spent the remainder of their lives. The family included five children, all by the first marriage. Our subject and his wife commenced life together upon the farm which they still occupy, and in due time their household circle numbered seven children: Minerva, the eldest, is the wife of Charles Currier, of Butler County, Kan., and the mother of one child, a daughter, Janet; Rhoda died when four years old; Herbert married Miss Flora Rogers, and is minister of the Presbyterian Church at Hastings, Neb.; he has eight children, namely: Herbert, Sarah, Charles, Robert, Eddie, Floyd, Ray and Theodora May. Andrew J. has charge of the homestead; Julia H. is the wife of Lawson Withington, of Jonesville, and the mother of one child, J. Roswell; Mary Jane is deceased.
- "Mr. Bushnell was at one time the owner of 268 acres of land, but has now only eighty acres. This, however, under a course of careful cultivation yields abundantly and is the source of a handsome income. Mr. Bushnell assisted in the erection of the first church edifice and the first school building ever erected in Litchfield Township, and has been closely identified with local affairs, serving as Township Collector several terms, and occupying various other offices of trust and responsibility. He and his estimable wife have been identified with the Congregational Church, of Litchfield, since 1841, a period of forty-seven years, and wherever there was any work to do or financial assistance to be rendered, they were the first to be approached and never failed to respond. Mr. Bushnell is a strong temperance man, was an Abolitionist from boyhood, and has been a member of the Republican party since its birth. There are none more worthy of prominent representation in a work of this kind than the subject of this sketch, who has built up for himself a good record among his fellow-citizens, and enjoys in an unlimited degree their esteem and confidence."[1]
iii. Mark Gillett Whitney, b. ca. 1821, NY; Isabel Taylor Norton. iv. (son) Whitney, b. 1820-1825. He is probably the same as Luke S. Whitney v. John Roswell Whitney, b. ca. 1830, NY; m. Harriet Almira Baldwin. vi. Electa Whitney, b. ca. 1830, NY; d. 11 Feb 1917; m. ca. 1849, Hiram Deyo.
Census
- 1820: not found.
- 1830, Saline, Washtenaw Co., MI: Jacob Whitney, 1 male 30-39, 1 male 20-29, 2 males 5-9, 1 male 0-4, 1 female 30-39, and 2 females 10-14.
- 1840, Litchfield, Hillsdale Co., MI: Jacob Whitney, 1 male 40-49, 2 males 15-19, 1 male 10-14, 1 female 40-49, 1 female 10-14; 6 in agriculture.
- 1850, Litchfield, Hillsdale Co., MI:
230 238 Jacob Whitney 60 M - Farmer $1500 N.Y. Sally Whitney 60 F - N.Y. 239 Mark Whitney 29 M - Farmer $800 N.Y. Isabel Whitney 27 F - N.Y. Eugene Whitney 3 M - Mich. Roswell Whitney 34 M - Farmer N.Y.
609 609 Mark E. Whitney 39 M - Farmer $3200 $1035 N.Y. Sabel 37 F - " Do Eugene 13 M - " Mich. Attended school Frank 9 M - " Do Attended school Rollin 7 M - " Do Attended school Wilkins 5 M - " Do Attended school Sarah 3 F - " Do Isabel 2/12 F - " Do 610 610 Hiram Deyo 37 M - Farmer $150 N.Y. Electa 30 F - " Do Mary J. 10 F - Do Jacob Whitney 69 M - N.Y.
References
- Whitney, Jacob - Find A Grave Memorial
- Whitney, Sally - Find A Grave Memorial
1.^ Portrait and biographical album of Hillsdale County, Mich. (Chicago: Chapman Brothers, 1888), pp. 746-747.
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