Family:Whitney, William Clark (1765-1859)

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William Clark6 Whitney (Joshua5, Daniel4, Benjamin3, John2, John1), son of Joshua5 and Mary (Clarke) Whitney, was born 19 Oct 1765, Worcester, MA,[1] and died 6 Oct 1859, Norway, ME, or 7 Sep 1845, Otisfield, ME.[2]

He married firstly, 3 or 23 Mar 1799, Sophia Fuller,[3] of Hebron, ME, daughter of Nathaniel and Lydia (Holmes) Fuller. She was born 23 Mar 1779.

He "Esq." married secondly, 12 Dec 1816, Otisfield, ME, Deborah Patch[4] "of Otisfield", daughter of Benjamin Patch.[5] She was born 20 Jul 1787, and "Mrs." died 26 Dec 1873, Otisfield, ME.[6]

William Clark Whitney was born in Worcester, MA, and with his brother Daniel, became a proprietor of lands at Paris, ME, by purchase from his father Joshua. William C. commenced his career four miles through the woods to township No. 4, now Paris, ME, and clearing up land, after a few years went to Hebron, where he lived about thirty-seven years. In 1832 he moved to Norway, where he died in 1859. He was a prominent business man, having filled the offices of justice of the peace, one of the associate justices of the Court of Sessions, representative to the General Court of Massachusetts, high sheriff of the County of Oxford eight years, selectman of the town of Hebron 17 years, besides other office of honor and trust. He was a live man, in every sense of the word, and never idle. He was a very capable and successful business man, and amassed on the largest estates ever accumulated in that county. He resided Worcester, MA, Paris, Topsham, Hebron and Norway, ME.

"Hon. William Clark Whitney, whose name appears so frequently in the preceding pages, was a son of Joshua Whitney of Worcester, one of the proprietors of No. 4, now Paris, and was himself the owner of the westerly half of lots 21-22 in the 5th range, which were conveyed to him by his father April 21, 1788 ; about this time his name was added to a committee to build a bridge at Bisco's Falls. As this was prior to his marriage, he may not have occupied these lots, but he is said to have lived in Paris, also in Topsham. Induced by Dr. Craigie, he came to Hebron and April 26, 1798, was given power of attorney to care for all his interests in this town ; a like commission was given him by Bossenger Foster, Aug. 25, 1800, a brother-in-law of Craigie, the title of the Craigie lands being, at the time, in Foster's name.

"Mr. Whitney m. March 3, 1799 Sophia, dau. of Nathaniel Fuller of Hebron and settled upon the large farm, (165) now occupied by his son George P. ; he continued to act as agent for Craigie and his heirs until their estate was closed out. In 1832 he removed to Norway where he died Oct. 6, 1859, at the advanced age of 94 years. Mr. Whitney was Adjt. of Col. Hubbard's Reg. in 1802, and probably held other rank in the militia, although he was usually called * 'Squire", as he was a Justice and had been Rep. in G. C. He was a member of Gov. King's Ex. Council, and subsequently Sheriff of Oxford County. In service longer than any Trustee, he was a steadfast friend of Hebron Academy. His capacity for business was remarkable; he amassed the largest personal estate in the county.

"His son George P. succeeded him in the Board of Trustees of the Academy, has represented the town in the Legislature and filled numerous positions of trust and honor to the entire satisfaction of his townsmen."[7]

Children of William Clark6 and Sophia (Fuller) Whitney:

i. Mary Clark7 Whitney, b. 7 Mar 1800, Hebron, ME;[8] d. 25 Aug 1801.
ii. Harriet Whitney, b. 9 Apr 1801, Hebron, ME;[9] d. 1843; m. 3 Oct 1827, Hebron, ME, Dr. Solomon P. Cushman,[10] of Brunswick, ME.
iii. Fanny Whitney, b. 6 Jan 1803;[11] d. 7 Dec 1843; m. Stephen Cummings,[12] d. Norway, ME.
iv. Sophia F. Whitney, born 10 Oct 1806; married William Goodard, of Bethel, Maine, and [d.] 7 Dec 1843.
v. William C. Whitney, b. 21 Nov 1809; d. Mar 1861 unmarried.
vi. Jane F. Whitney, b. 23 Oct 1812; "of Norway" m. 3 Jun 1838, Norway, ME, James S. Greenleaf;[13] resided Norway. He was b. 5 Feb 1814; d. 13 Dec 1860; was a carpenter. Children:
a. Charles F. Greenleaf, b. 20 Sep 1839; m. Euphremia J. Bradbury, 10 Mar 1864; address, Norway, ME.
b. Helen Greenleaf, b. 28 Oct 1841; m. 5 Nov 1859, Philo S. Cherry; address, Red Creek, NY.
c. Solomon Greenleaf, b. 17 Jan 1846; d. 2 Nov 1882, leaving a widow and two children; m. 15 Apr 1871, Susan Compton, of Gifford, SC.
d. Mary J. Greenleaf, b. 25 Apr 1848; unmarried; address, Norway, ME.
e. Flora Greenleaf, b. 15 Oct 1850; unmarried; address, Sedalia, MO.
f. James Greenleaf, b. 23 Mar 1853, d. 20 May 1884; unmarried.

Children of William Clark6 and Deborah (Patch) Whitney:

vii. George Pearce Whitney, b. 13 Aug 1819, Hebron, ME;[14] m. Ermina P. Packard.
viii. Deborah P. Whitney, b. 22 Mar 1822; d. 27 May 1822.
ix. Sarah P. Whitney, b. 22 Mar 1822; d. 3 Apr 1822.
x. Sarah Deborah Whitney, b. 2 Jun 1824, Hebron, ME;[15] d. July 1863.
xi. Edwin Whitney, b. 8 Sep 1829; d. 19 Jun 1832.

Census

231 235 William C. Whitney 84 M - Miscellaneous $12625 Me. Deborah " 64 F - " William " 41 M - " Insane Sarah D. " 24 F - " " Mary M. Goss 30 F - " Francis Bennett 22 M - Farmer "

156 164 Deborah Whitney 72 F - House Keeper $6000 $4000 Maine Blind William C. Whitney 50 M - $2000 " Insane Sarah D. Whitney 35 F - $1000 " Insane Abby Coffin 16 F - House Work " Charles B. Cummings 24 M - Farm Laborer $500 "

319 343 Whitney, Deborah 82 F W Keeping House $2500 $4000 Maine Eunice 67 F W Work in House Maine Greenlief, Mary 22 F W Works in House Maine

Eunice was William's niece, daughter of brother Daniel.

References

1.^  "William Clark [Whitney], s. Joshua and Mary, [born] Oct. 19, 1765," according to Franklin P. Rice, ed., Worcester Births, Marriages and Deaths. (Births 1714-1848; Marriages 1747-1848; Deaths, 1826-1848), Collections of the Worcester Society of Antiquity, vol. 12 (1894).

2.^  "William C. [Whitney], [died] 7 Sep. 1845," according to Spurr, William Samuel, ed., Vital Records of Otisfield, Maine, to the Year 1892; Births, Marriages and Deaths ([Portland, Me.]: Maine Historical Society, 1948) and 1860 Mortality Schedule.

3.^  "William C. [Whitney], and Sophia Fuller, m. 3 Mar 1799," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

4.^  "William C. [Whitney], and Deborah Patch, m. 1 Nov 1815," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

5.^  "William C. [Whitney] Esq., of Hebron and Deborah Patch of Otisfield, [married] 12 Dec. 1815," according to Spurr, William Samuel, ed., Vital Records of Otisfield, Maine, to the Year 1892; Births, Marriages and Deaths ([Portland, Me.]: Maine Historical Society, 1948).

6.^  "Deborah [Whitney], Mrs., w. William C. and d. of Benjamin Patch, 27 Dec. 1873," according to Spurr, William Samuel, ed., Vital Records of Otisfield, Maine, to the Year 1892; Births, Marriages and Deaths ([Portland, Me.]: Maine Historical Society, 1948).

7.^  King, Marquis Fayette, Annals of Oxford, Maine, from its incorporation in 1829-1850. Prefaced with an account of the Shepardsfield Plantation and Supplemented with Genealogical notes from the town's earliest records (Portland, ME: the author, 1903), p. 121.

8.^  "Mary Clark [Whitney], d/o William C. & Sophia, b. 7 mar 1800," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

9.^  "Harriot [Whitney], d/o William C. & Sophia, b. 9 Apr 1801," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

10.^  "Harriet [Whitney], and Solomon P. Cushman, m. 3 Oct 1827," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

11.^  "Fanny [Whitney], d/o William C. & Sophia, b. 6 Jan 1803," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

12.^  "Fanny [Whitney], and Stephen Cummings, m. 17 Dec 1824," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

13.^  "3 June 1838, James Greenleaf and Jane F. Whitney, Norway, recorded in Norway by C. Soule," according to McAllister, Donald L., and Lucille E. Nass, eds., Marriage Returns of Oxford County, Maine Prior to 1892, Maine Genealogical Society Special Publication #16 (Rockport, Me.: Picton Press, c1993).

14.^  "George Pearce [Whitney], s/o William C. & Deborah, b. 13 Aug 1819," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.

15.^  "Sarah Deborah [Whitney], d/o William C. & Deborah, b. 2 Jun 1824," according to Hebron, Maine, Vital Records.


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