Family:Whitney, Elisha (1747-1832)

Elisha⁶ Whitney (Joshua⁵, Nathaniel⁴, Nathaniel³, John², John¹), son of Joshua⁵ and Mehitable (Wilson) Whitney,^[1] was born 8 Jan 1747, Spencer, MA,^[2] and died 4 Jul 1832, Wysox, PA.

He married, 20 Feb 1783, Spencer, MA, Esther Clark, daughter of Asa and Rebecca (Walker) Clark. She was born 22 Aug 1763, Pomfret, CT, and died 1 Feb 1851, Wysox, PA.

He was in the Revolutionary war in the company from Spencer, commanded by Capt. Green; resided Stockbridge, MA.

Elisha Whitney, a native of Spencer, Mass., born 1747, served as a private in Col. Jonathan Warner's regiment on the Lexington alarm, April 19, 1775, and also in Capt. Joel Green's company under Col. Ebenezer Larned, serving 3 months and 3 days. He married 1782, Esther, daughter of Asa Clark, a Massachusetts school teacher. Mrs. Whitney (then Miss Clark) was present with Gen. Joseph Warren's wife when she learned the sad fate of that gallant officer at Bunker Hill. Soon after their marriage, they removed to Stockbridge, Mass. where they lived until 1810, then emigrated to the Wyoming Valley. In 1816, Mr. Whitney came to Wysox with his family and here resided until his death, July 4, 1832, aged 85 years. His wife died February 1, 1851, aged 88 years. Both are buried in the Wysox cemetery. They had ten children, all born at Stockbridge, as follows:

Rebecca died in Wysox unmarried.

Dr. Asa Clark, who was a physician of great ability, was the first resident physician of Kingston. In 1810 he was commissioned a justice of the peace for Burlington and Wysox, and in 1820 was elected register and recorder of Luzerne county. He married first a daughter of Col. Benj. Dorrance and had children, Benjamin, Mary and Nancy; married 2nd Susan Inman and had daughters, Elizabeth and Jerusha.

Elizabeth married Joseph M. Piollet and was the mother of Victor E., Joseph E., Frances T. (Mrs. Alexander Dewing), Emily V. (Mrs. Thos. T. Wierman) and Elizabeth J. (Mrs. D. C. Salisbury).

Sally died Dec. 3, 1812, unmarried.

Elliott, b. 1791, came to Wysox in or before 1812 and engaged in farming and lumbering; he married, 1817, Maria Goodwin; died March 12, 1836, aged 45. Their children and marriages follow: Marshall G.,to Louise Vorpe; Elizabeth to Dr. David L. Scott; Charlotte to Rev. Abner Brush; Elliott to Celinda Stevens; Isaac N. to Mary Worden; Brunette to James B. McDonald.

Alvin, b. Dec. 31, 1793, engaged in farming and lumbering in Wysox, died Nov. 5, 1872; married 1st, Feb. 11, 1819, Mary Woodburn, married 2nd, March 10, 1850, Nancy Woodburn. Children (all by former marriage) and marriages follow: Asa Clark never married; Sarah died at 12 years; Ellen never married; Andrew Jackson to Olive A. Maynard; Mary H. never married; Charles Carroll to Margaret Vought; Allen Dorrance never married; Emily V. to Dr. Wm. Rice.

Ebenezer, b. Dec. 15, 1795, married Nov. 25, 1818 Betsey Woodburn, died April 16, 1838 in Wysox. Their children and marriages: Rebecca died at 20 unmarried; John to Helen Stowe; Bertrand to Mary Brown; Frances to Burke Bennett; Septimus died unmarried; Alvin to Hattie Furman; Amelia and Nancy died unmarried; Lucius E. to Mary Cooley.

Dr. Elisha, b. July 25, 1797, a graduate of Hamilton medical college, practiced at Wyalusing; it is said his library was the largest in the county; he married Sally, daughter of Humphrey and Hannah (Dodge) Brown; died January 10, 1847. Their children and marriages: Ellen to Daniel Coolbaugh, Wysox; James Monroe to Mrs. Edith Fawkes Woodfield of Stroud, Eng.; Darwin to Laura Bixby of Winnebago, Ill.; Sallie to Lyman Morgan, Wysox; Elisha to Cornelia Rugg, Sylvania; Esther to Harrison Lamb, Wyalusing; Mary Elizabeth to Jesse Allen, Wysox; Ebenezer to Adaline Blasdell, Montrose; Joseph Marie to Priscilla Anne Straw of Winnebago, Ill.

Esther, b. Dec. 23, 1799, married Moses, son of Napthali Woodburn; died among her children in Iowa.

Alanson, b. July 1, 1801, married Laura Towner and spent his last years at Monroeton. Their children and marriages: Electa died at 18; Franklin; Emeline to Henri Chubbuck; Clara to 1st Mr. Mingos, to 2nd Mr. Griggs.^[3]

Elisha Whitney came to Wysox with his family in 1816. He was born in Spencer, Mass., in 1747. He married Esther Clark, of the same State, in 1782. Her father's name was Asa Clark, a schoolteacher by profession. She was present with Gen. Warrcn's wife when she learned the sad fate of that gallant officer and patriotic gentleman. She was born in Spencer, Worcester Co., Mass., in 1763.

Soon after their marriage they removed to Stockbridge, Mass., and were among the first settlers of that place. They had ten children born to them at that place, between the years 1783 and 1801. With their family, they moved to the Wyoming valley in 1810, and in 1816 came to Wysox. Mr. Whitney was a Revolutionary soldier. He died July 4, 1832, aged eighty-five years, and Mrs. Whitney died Feb. 1, 1851, aged eighty-eight years, and both are buried in Wysox. Their children were as follows: (2) Rebecca, died at Wysox, unmarried; (2) Asa Clark, married for his first wife, a daughter of Col. Benjamin Dorrance, of Wilkes-Barre. He was a physician of great ability, and practiced throughout the Wyoming valley and vicinity. By his first wife he had three children, (3) Benjamin, a soldier in the War of the Rebellion, in an Illinois regiment; (3) Mary and (3) Nancy, all residing in Byron, Ogle Co., Ill. Dr. Whitney's second wife was Susan Inman, of Plymouth, Pa., by whom he had two daughters, (3) Elizabeth and (3) Jerusha. (2) Asa C. Whitney died Dec. 10, 1824; (2) Elizabeth Whitney, born Dec. 10, 1786, died Sept. 29, 1840. She was married at Towanda, in 1810, to J. W. Piollet, who came to America from his native France, about the beginning of the present century, he was a captain of a troop of horse at the battle of Marengo, and by his bravery won the favor of Napoleon, who promoted him to the position of postmaster in the Army of the Alps. He was a well-educated gentleman, and settled in Wysox, where his wife bore him five children: (3) Victor E. Piollet, born June 24, 1812, married Jane, daughter of Hon. Jesse Miller, of Harrisburg, Pa. He has been for many years prominent in the politics of Bradford County, and has filled many positions of public trust in the State. Was superintendent of North Branch canal, 1839-42; representative in Pennsylvania legislature, 1845--46; paymaster of United States Volunteers in the Mexican war; superintendent of construction of Pennsylvania and New York railroad, 1867-72, and is a heavy stockholder in the same. He, with his brother, Joseph M., occupies the farm formerly owned by their father, to which they have added several thousand acres of the finest lands in the county, and are looked upon as leading agriculturists of the county.

(3) Joseph E. Piollet married Esther Cox, of Harrisburg, Pa., Nov. 29, 1849; she was the daughter of John B. Cox, who married Matilda McAllister.

(3) Theresa Piollet married Alexander Dewing, of Warren, Bradford Co.

(3) Emily Piollet married Thomas T. Wareham, who is a civil engineer, and has held many positions in the State, and is now chief engineer of the Pennsylvania canal company; office at Harrisburg.

(3) Elizabeth Piollet married D. Alanson Saulsbury, and is now deceased. (2) Sally Whitney, died Dec. 3, 1812, unmarried. (2) Elliott Whitney married Maria Goodwin, 1817, had ten children, died March 16, 1836.

(2) Alvin Whitney, born Dec. 31, 1793, married Mary Woodburn, of Rome, Pa., Feb. 11, 1819; and to Nancy Woodburn, of Rome. By first with had eight children; died Nov. 5, 1872.

(2) Ebenezer Whitney, born Dec. 15, 1795, married Betsey Woodburn, Nov. 25, 1818, had 9 children, died April 16, 1838.

(2) Esther Whitney, born Dee. 23, 1799, married Moses Woodburn, in 1818. He died Feb. 11, 1843. Site lives with her children at Yatton, Iowa.

(2) Elisha Whitney, born July 26, 1798, graduate of Hamilton college, N. Y., practiced medicine in Wyalusing, married Sally Brown in 1818, had 7 children. He is now deceased.

(2) Alanson, born July 1, 1801, living at Monroeton, married Laura Towner, has 4 children.^[4]

Children of Elisha⁶ and Esther (Clark) Whitney:

i.	Rebecca7 Whitney, b. 7 Sep 1783, Spencer, MA; bapt. 1 Apr 1789, Stockbridge, MA; d. 18 Dec 1818, Wysox, PA; unmarried.
ii.	Asa Clark Whitney, b. 5 May 1785, Stockbridge, MA; m.(1) Elizabeth Dorrance; m.(2) Susan Inman.
iii.	Elizabeth Whitney, b. 18 Dec 1786, Stockbridge, MA; bapt. 1 Apr 1789, Stockbridge, MA; d. 23 Sep 1840, Wysox, PA; m. 29 Sep 1811, Towanda, PA, Joseph Marie Piollet.
iv.	Sally Whitney, b. 12 Oct 1788, Stockbridge, MA; bapt. 1 Apr 1789, Stockbridge, MA; d. 2 Dec 1821, Wysox, PA, aged 33 years; unmarried.
v.	Elliot Whitney, b. 18 May 1791, Stockbridge, MA; m. Maria Goodwin.
vi.	Alvin Whitney, b. 31 Dec 1793, Stockbridge, MA; m.(1) Mary Woodburn; m.(2) Nancy Woodburn.
vii.	Ebenezer Whitney, b. 15 Dec 1795, Stockbridge, MA; m. Betsey H. Woodburn.
viii.	Elisha Whitney, b. 25 Jul 1797, Stockbridge, MA; m. Sally Brown.
ix.	Esther Whitney, b. 23 Dec 1799, Stockbridge, MA; m. 1818, Moses Woodburn.
x.	Alanson Whitney, b. 1 Jul 1801, Stockbridge, MA; m. Laura Towner.

Census

• (perhaps) 1790, Amherst, Hillsborough Co., NH: "Elijah Whitney", 1 male over 16, 1 male under 16, 5 females.
• 1800, Stockbridge, Berkshire Co., MA: Elisha Whitney, 1 male 26-44, 2 males 10-15, 3 males 0-9, 1 female 26-44, 1 female 16-25, 2 females 10-15, and 2 females 0-9.
• 1810, Stockbridge, Berkshire Co., MA: Elisha Whitney, 1 male over 45, 1 male 16-25, 2 males 10-15, 1 male 0-9, 1 female over 45, 1 female 26-44, 2 females 16-25, and 1 female 10-15.
• 1820, Wysox, Bradford Co., PA: Elija Whitney, 1 male over 45, 4 males 26-44, 1 male 18-25, 1 male 16-17, 1 female over 45, 2 females 26-44, and 1 female 16-25; 1 engaged in agriculture.
• 1830, Wysox, Bradford Co., PA: Elisha Whitney

References

• All data imported from Frederick Clifton Pierce, The Descendants of John Whitney, Who Came from London, England, to Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1635, (Chicago: 1895), p. 139.

1.^  His parentage is proven by his birth record.

2.^  "Elisha [Whitney], s. Joshua and Mehitable, [born] Jan. 8, 1747," according to Franklin P. Rice, ed., Vital Records of Spencer, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849 (Worcester, Massachusetts: The Systematic History Fund, 1909), pp. 115-116.

3.^  Heverly, Clement F., Pioneer & Patriot Families of Bradford County PA 1800-1825, vol. II, pages 211-212 (extracted from Tri-Counties Genealogy & History, by Joyce M. Tice).

4.^  Rev. David Craft, History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of its Prominient Men and Pioneers (Philadelphia: L. H. Everts & Co., 1878).

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Copyright © 2006, 2007 Robert L. Ward and the Whitney Research Group