[gurley.FTW]

Residing Marshall County, Tenn. 1886


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PROOFS IN POSSESSION:
Parentage:
Birth:
Marriage:
Death:
Other Proofs:





Robert M. Whitman is referred to as "farmer" and "trader" in census records, never as "Dr." He probably studied apothecary with his brother and practiced medicine by prescribing it and making it available to neighbors in Tennessee where he was a farmer and a trader. He was also never a "minister" of the church. He did preach at services, and was called Elder. This is like being a deacon.

From GOODSPEED- Biographicial Entry for James Whitman [Robert's son by Almeda Saunders] of Marshall County:
.....a son of Rev. R.M. Whitman. When a mere boy R.M. Whitman went with his parents to Virginia, where he lived quite a number of years. They then immigrated to Bedford county, and here he married Almedia Sanders (the subject's mother), and a native of Bedford County. To them were born nine children. After her death the father was married twice; first to Mrs. Jane Reed, who died in 1857, and then to Mrs. Ann Edwards, who still lives. The father died in Texas in 1873. He was an extensive farmer and stock trader, and in early life practiced medicine. He was also a preacher of the gospel.

from Lincoln County Tennessee Pioneers, Vol. III, #1 Ball Fork Church of Christ at Mulberry, Third Saturday in May 1839, The Liberty Baptist Association having convened on Friday before & we by our messengers uniting with them the church agree to refer the case of Brother Henry Warren to our June meeting. Brethren Halcole, Seal, Leftwich & Whitman being in attendance. They preached the word & the Lord by his spirit accompanied it and 3 white God's children were edified, sinners ware made to mourn, and we trust a goodly number ware made to rejoice in Jesus as their Saviour. On Wednesday door was opened for the reception of members. Eight of the above ware baptized on Sunday. On Sunday, the sacrament of Supper was attended also.

The End of the Curch Under the Old Association, September, 1839.

The only proof we have that Robert M. was the son of Daniel is the work by Farnham. Daniel Whitman's obit in the Nashville paper on 1 Oct. 1834 only says he died, and does not name any survivors.

FARNAM: "Elder Robert Molineaux Whitman, went south in his early manhood and became noted, not only as a pioneer preacher of great worth but also as a very successful physician of the "Thompsonian order." He was also possessed of financial ability to a marked degree, and left to his children a handsome fortune. He moved, late in life, to Washington County, Texas, and the town of Whitman in that state was named for him. He was noted for his kind benevolence and charitable disposition." 12 ch.

BEDFORD COUNTY LAND RECORDS: April 12, 1831
" Robert Whitman to Jack Shaffner. One hundred and eighty-two acres, in Civil District #23.

BEDFORD COUNTY COURT RECORDS, July 21, 1840:
"Robert M. Whitman and Samuel Doak pay to Nancy Edgar five hundred and seventy-five dollars in full payment for a negro girl mulatto named Selian, about twenty years of age."

Robert M. Whitman appears on both the 1850 and 1860 Tennessee, Lincoln County, U.S. Census. Charles does not appear.

The inventory papers of Daniel Whitman in Bedford county, TN of 1848 was no doubt the inventory of Robert M's BROTHER, Daniel, who lived in Alabama but did own land in Tennessee. The papers list Robert as administrator, but do not identify him in terms of relationship.
"Upon application of Robert M. Whitman it is ordered that by the Court that he be appointed Administrator Debonis Mon of the Estate of Daniel Whitman, Decd., whereupon the said Robert M. Whitman entered into Bond in the sum of five hundred dollars with William L. Tune his security , the execution of which bond was duly acknowledged in open court by the said Robert M. Whitman and his said security and was by the Court approved. Whereupon the said Robert M. Whitman was only qualified as administrator (Debonis Mon) aforesaid.

DR. ROBERT MOLINEUX6 WHITMAN

6. Dr. Robert Molineux6 Whitman (b. 1 Sept. 1804 Hopkinton, N.H., d. 26 March

1873 Washington Co., Tex.; buried Farquhar Cemetery near Bremond); son
of Daniel5 and Sarah (Kast) Whitman of Mass., N.H., Va., S Tenn.; m. (1)
3 Oct. 1833 at Shelbyville, Bedford Co., Tenn., Almeda Saunders (b. 14 Jan.
1815 Bedford Co., Tenn. d. 18 Oct. 1852 Lincoln Co., Tenn.); - 10 c.; m.
(2) 31 May 1854 Burnsville, Dallas Co., Ala., Mrs. Jane Lavinia (Hall) Reed
(b. 1826 Dallas Co., Ala. d. 28 Feb. 1857 Burnsville, Ala.), widow of
Smith C. Reed (d. before 1850), dt. Richard and Sarah (Morris) Hall of
Burnsville, Dallas Co., Ala.; - 2 c. (1 d. inf.); m. (3) 10 July 1859
Dallas Co., Ala. as her 3rd husband, Mrs. Mary Ann (Pearce) (Lewis)
Edwards (b. 1815 Ga. fl. 1886 Ala.), widow of (1) Henry Dudley Lewis and
(2) Littleton Edwards (d. 1858); - no issue; = 12 c.

Micro Bio: Born Hopkinton, N.H. 1804. To Meadsville, Va., 1809; to Huntsville, Ala., 1829; to Bedford Co., Tenn., 1833; to Lincoln Co., Tenn., 1830. Physican, farmer, stock trader. Elder, Baptist Church; occasional preach-er. To Washington Co., Tex., 1868, where died 1873. Whitman, Tex. named for him. Listed by Farnham in Des-cendants of John l~hitman of Weymouth, and Goodspeed's Histories of Tennessee (Marshall County). . _ ~ _

Proof: Names of wives given by Goodspeed. Names of parents given by Farnham. Birth, death dates on gravestone, Farquhar Cemetery 1 mile NE of intersection, State Hwy 90 ~ Farm Road 912, Washington Co., Tex.
Jane(Hall) Whitman named daughter of father in Dallas Co., Ala., Probate File 22, "Richard Hall." Named wife of R.M. Whitman on gravestone, Shady Grove Baptist Church Cemetery, Country Road 83, Burnsville, Dallas Co., Ala.

Physician, Farmer, Stock Trader

Robert Molineux6 Whitman was born in Hopkinton, N.H. in 1804, the sixth child of Daniel5 and Sarah (Kast) Whitman. His parents were close friends of the Moli-neux family of Hopkinton, and so he was given that name. The Molineuxs reciprocated by naming one of their daughters, Sarah Kast.


Robert was five years old when the Whitmans migrated to Meadsville, Va. He was educated in Virginia, studied medicine, and began his practice in Meadsville. In 1829, when he was 25 years of age, he moved with his parents to Huntsville, Ala. The economy there was based on cotton, and in 1830, Robert purchased a plantation 40 miles north of Huntsville in Bedford County, Tenn. And so he began his long career as planter and stock trader, as well as physician.

On 3 October 1833, Robert married 18-year-old Almeda Saunders of nearby Shelby-ville, Tenn., and settled on his plantation to rear a large family. He practiced medicine in the Thompsonian order (i.e. caring for the whole person, not just treat-ing the physical body) and became greatly beloved as well as respected in the com-

munity. He was astute in financial matters, and in the next decade bought and sold, ~'

at a profit, several tracts of land. His honesty in deals was above approach, and
there is an indenture in the Bedford County Court House dated 1835 which shows that
William Patterson gave to Robert M. Whitman "for consideration of trust and confidence
reposed in him" his entire crop of cotton, corn, oats, stock of cattle, 30 heads of
hogs, and one hay mare, to be disposed of.

| $ometime in this period, Dr. Whitman joined the Baptist Church, and unlike his

Puritan father, became a slaveholder. There is a court record stating that Robert M.
Whitman and Samuel Doak sold to Nancy Edgar of Bedford County for $575 "a Negro girl
Mulatto named Selian, about 20 years of age."

The Move to Mulherry

In 1838, the Whitmans and their three children moved 20; miles south to the

~Mulberry community in Lincoln County, between Fayetteville and Winchester. Dr.

· Whitman was made an Elder in the Baptist church, and it was there that he began to

preach occasionally for the Liberty Baptist Association. He continued to practice

~medicine, expand his land holdings, and became a wealthy man. He made house calls
'.' to plantations, left medicine with his patients (such as tincture of Myrrh), bought

supplies for them, and even paid the Constable for John Woodman.

Almeda had seven more children at Mulberry and then died in 1851, at age 37, after the birth of her tenth child.

Jane (Hall) Reed

It is not known why Dr. Whitman visited Dallas County, Ala., in 1854, but it probably was as a delegate to a Baptist Conference. While there, he met a young widow, Mrs. Jane L. (Hall) Reed of Burnsville (near Selma), whose brother-in-law, Rev. Athelstan Andrews, was pastor of Shady Grove Baptist Church at Burnsville. Jane's parents had come to Alabama from South Carolina in 1819, acquired a large plantation and a number of slaves. Mr. Hall died in 1846, leaving his property to his heirs. In the division of the estate, Mrs. Hall received one-third of the land

(about 800 acres) as her dower rights, and Jane received 80 acres as her share of -

her siblings' part.

Dr. Whitman and Jane Hall were married on 31 May 1854. They departed immedi-ately for Tennessee, but were back in Burnsville the next year so that Jane could give hirth to her first child, a son, in her mother's home. Among the Halls' neigh-bors and close friends was the Dubose family, and the boy was given the name, Charles Dubose Whitman.

When the Whitmans returned to Tennessee with the baby, they were accompanied by Jane's orphaned nephew, young Richard Hall, who wished to attend school in Win-chester. En route, Dr. Whitman purchased a hat and boots for the youth, and after

| arrival, he paid for Richard's board and tuition for one year. In 1857, they journey-
~ ed hack to Burnsville, where Jane gave birth in late February to a daughter. They named her Sallie, for both of their mothers.

Jane died ten days later, and Dr. Whitman buried her near her father in the Shady Grove Cemetery. Her Hall property passed to her children.

The Shady Grove Cemetery is located under the trees on a hill across from the church on Country Road 83. It is now (1986) overgrown, but the gravestones are still distinguishable. Jane Whitman's marker reads:

Jane L. Whitman, wife of
Dr. R. M. Whitman
Born 1826 - Died Feb'y 28, 1857 - Age 32 years

Her obituary, which appeared in the South Western Baptist on 7 May 1857, called her "a lady of superior merit, of a lively and social temperament. She had the kindest of dispositions ... won love of all who came within her influence ... leaves a husband and two lovely little children, an only sister, and an aged mother. Kindness and gentleness ... natural dignity ... Christian grace ... many years a member of the Baptist church."

Dr. Whitman took his two-year-old son, Charles, and infant daughter, Sallie, back to Tennessee to the care of his sister, Mrs, Elizabeth (Whitman) Carr, at Winchester. The baby died at three months of age, but Charles continued to live with the Carrs, as did Dr. Whitman's daughters, Elizabeth7, aged 14, and Frances, aged 8. His eldest daughter had married; his eldest son, James, was looking after the plantation with an overseer, and the younger boys were away at boarding school.

The Alabama Years

Dr. Whitman had been friend of the Littleton Edwards family in Dallas County, Ala., and when Mr. Edwards died in 1858, he sent his condolences to the widow, Mary Ann. Mrs. Edwards was left a large estate and nine children (three by her first marriage to Henry D. Lewis), and five of them were still minors.

The Texas Years
1_

After the war, James and Edward Whitman moved to Washington County, Texas to _

engage in the mercantile business. Thei r father joined them in 1868, and young
Charles, then aged 13, returned to Winchester to school. It is not known iF Mrs.

On 10 July 1859, Robert M. Whitman, aged 55, and Mrs. Mary Ann (Pearce) Edwards, aged 44, were married in Dallas County. They remained on her plantation near Burns-yille, and Dr. Whitman sent for five-year-old Charles to live with them and his wife's young children, ages seven to twenty. Dr. Whitman deeded four tracts (519 acres) of his Mulberry land in Tennessee to his eldest sons, James and Edward Whit-man, who took over management of the plantation.

When the Civil War began, James enlisted in the Confederate Army and served for four years. He was captured once, but succeeded in making his escape. His younger brother, Robert7 Whitman, although only 17 years of age, also enlisted, was wounded, and his leg was amputated.

The Texas Years

After the war, James and Edward Whitman moved to Washington County, Texas to engage in the mercantile business. Their father joined them in 1868, and young Charles, then aged 13, returned to Winchester to school. It is not known if Mrs. Hary Ann Whitman accompanied her husband to Texas, as she is not listed in the 1870 census of Washington County with him. Dr. Whitman is shown living with his bach-
elor sons, Edward and James, and his occupation is given as farmer.

Perhaps Mary Ann had returned to Alabama, as Dr. Whitman was in Dallas County

~on 16 June 1871 when the Hall estate was divided among the heirs, at which time he
.. petitioned Probate Court at Selma to be named guardian of his youngest son, "Charley
'' Whitman, a minor 16 years of age, who has estate in Alabama. Petitioner is the

father of said minor and resides in the state of Texas." (See Dallas County Probate,
File 22, "Richard Hall.")

The court granted the request, and the Administrator of the estate of Richard Hall paid $143 to Robert M. Whitman, "guardian of Charles Whitman, a minor, who in-herited in right of his mother, who was the daughter of R. Hal1."

Dr. Whitman returned to Washington County, Texas, where he died two years later. He was buried in the Farquhar Cemetery near Brenham, about one mile north-east of the intersection of State Highway 90 and Farm Road 912. His marker, found in 1970 among a scattering of broken stones beneath some ancient oak trees, reads:

R.M. Whitman
Born at Hopkinton, N.H. Sept. 1, 1804
Died March 26, 1873

! His biography in Farnham's Descendants of John Whitman of Weymouth, states,
~"He went South in early manhood and became noted, not only as a pioneer preacher
'84 of great worth, but also as a very successful physician of the Thompsonian order.
He was possessed of financial ability to a marked degree, and left to his children
a handsome fortune. He moved late in life to Washington County, Texas, and the
town of Whitman in that state was named for him. He was noted for his kind benevolence and charitable disposition."
Dr. Whitman was survived by his widow and seven living children. The town of Whitman, Texas no longer appears on the map.

Aftermath

Mary Ellen7 Whitman married A.D. Trimble, D.D., pastor of the Winchester Baptist Church. Dr. Trimble was instrumental in raising funds for the estabishment of Mary Sharp College in Winchester in 1851. The Trimbles later moved to Seymour, Mo., and one of their sons, Edward Trimble, Ph.D., was a noted professor at the University of Chicago.

James7Whitman returned to Tennessee from Texas, married, and settled in
Marshall County, where he was an outstanding farmer and stock raiser. His biography
is included in Goodspeed's Histories of Tennessee (Marshall County).

Walter C.7 Whitman joined his brother Edward7 in Washington County, Texas, and both later moved to adjacent Montgomery County where they resided between Willis and Huntsville. Each married and had children.

Elizabeth7 Whitman and her husband, Elijah Martin Ousley, a real estate agent,

7

lived at Winchester, Tenn. Robert' Whitman, who had lost a leg during the Civil War, continued to operate his father's Mulberry plantation, turned farm, and was elected Deputy Sheriff of Lincoln County, Tenn. Fannie7 Whitman married Edward N. Grigsby and lived at Elkton, Tenn.

Youngest son, Charles D.7 Whitman, followed his father's avocation as preacher, attended Southern Baptist Seminary at Louisville, and was sent to Texas as a pioneer Baptist missionary. He married, had a large family, and became a leader in the

· establishment of churches and schools in the communities where he lived. His des-

cendants have spread throughout the United States. (See Chapter VII.)

.

Issue of Dr. Robert M. Whitman and (1) Almeda Saunders:

i. Mary E1len7 Whitman (b. 5 Aug. 1834 Bedford Co., Tenn.) m. 23 Dec. 1851 A.D. Trimble; - 10 c.

To Seymour, Mo. ii. Rachel7 Whitman (1835-d.inf.) iii. Daniel Presley7 Whitman (1837-1852)

-

iv. James William7 Whitman (k. 28 Nov. 1838 Lincoln Co., Tenn. flo 1886 Marshall Co., Tenn.), m. (1) 1877 Ann E. Hutton (d. 1832); m. (2) 1883 Jennie P. Grigsby of Giles Co., Tenn.; - 1 c.

v. Edward Doak7 Whitman (b. 12 Nov. 1840 Lincoln Co., Tenn. d. 14 Sept.

~1875 Montgomery Co., Tex.) m. 1873 Montgomery Co., Tex. Mary W. Corley
_ - 2 c.

vi. Elizabeth7 Whitman (b. 30 April 1842 Lincoln Co., Tenn.) m. 1864 Elijah

~Martin Ousley, - _ .
F"' Lived Winchester, Tenn.

vii. Robert Harrison7 Whitman (b. 4 March 1844 Lincoln Co., Tenn., fl. 1836
_

_ Lincoln Co., Tenn. - Unm.
~viii. Walter Carrington7 Whitman (b. 25 Dec. 1846 Lincoln Co., Tenn.) m. 1875
_ Montgomery Co., Tex. Lisetta E. Brown; - 5 c.
~; ~I ~_ _ _ ~


I am happy to share information. The majority of this work is sourced with primary proof. Family Tree, however, chooses to use itself as the documentation source when you merge files. Contact me for the proper citation if one is missing. Please share w

I am happy to share information. The majority of this work is sourced with primary proof. Family Tree, however, chooses to use itself as the documentation source when you merge files. Contact me for the proper citation if one is missing. Please share w

1. Mary Ellen WHITMAN b. 5 Aug 1834, Bedford County, Tennessee.
2. Rachel WHITMAN b. 9 Nov 1835; d. 10 Nov 1835.
3. Daniel Presley WHITMAN b. 6 Feb 1837, Lincoln, Tennessee; d. 2 Jul 1852.
4. 1. James William WHITMAN b. 28 Nov 1838, Moore Fraction, Lincoln County, Tennessee.
5. Edward Doak WHITMAN b. 12 Nov 1840, Lincoln County, Tenn.; d. 14 Sep 1875, Montgomery County, Texas.
6. Elizabeth Carr WHITMAN b. 30 Apr 1842, Lincoln County, Tennessee.
7. Robert Harrison WHITMAN b. 4 Mar 1844.
8. Walter Carrington WHITMAN b. 25 Dec 1846.
9. Frances Madeline WHITMAN b. 20 Jan 1849.
10. George Phillips WHITMAN b. 18 Jan 1851, Bedford, Tennessee; d. 16 Nov 1854.

[gurley.FTW]

Merchant, lumberman, farmer, tavern keeper; founder of Southern branch of whitman family. Moved to Whitman grant in Henniker, N.H., 1792; owned timeber lands; furnished lumber for U.S.S. Constitution (Old Ironsides). Moved to Hopkinton, N.Y., 1796; lived in Warner N.H., 1799-1801; backk to Hopkinton, N.Y., 1801-1809. Moved to Halifax County, Virginia, 1809; foundland he had bought unseen to be high in the mountains and worthless; not able to get to it , it pretty much wiped him out. Operated hostelry and tavern at Meadeville, then established cattle and horse farm. Refused to own slaves. Sons did work on the farm. Moved to Huntsville, Ala. with sons in 1829; moved to Bedford Co. Tenn., 1833, where died and buried near Shelbyville. Grandson, Harrison T. Carr, residing in Winchester, Franklin County, Tennessee, 1886:

"Born within the realm of King George III, he witnessed the dawn of the Republic--its baptism and christening in the blood of heroes--this foundling, this offspring of patriots and statesmen.

Daniel Whitman was a man of mark, features bold in outline, open and confiding, robust in form, square built, strong physically and mentally. He traveled New England considerable on business of various kinds, was once in the lumber and cutting business. During that time, he furnished lumber for the renowned old ship, the 'Constitution.' He kept an assorted retail store, was thrifty and well to do in 'getting on'; met, loved, and married Sallie Kast, and their fortunes, be they what they may, were united. They lived, loved and were happy, and prospered will until the spirit of adventure came.

Seeking the "Western Dream", he unfortunately came in contact with some eastern sharpers, speculators in Virginia lands, and was induced to invest and emigrate. Unfortunately, he was deluded and defrauded. The lands were a wild, lying far back in inaccessible mountains, and the titles worthless and fraudulent.

Tired and weary, he settled down in Halifax County, Virginia, somewhere around 1808. Here he found generous friends, hospitable neighbors. A new start had to be begun, and quite well it was done. Soon he had a home, cattle, horses and herds around him, kept a village hostlery, and an old-time tavern. He was popular, courteous, kind, and honest. But once again the promising West loomed in his dreams.

With the tide of emigration, leaving some of his family to come the next year, he once again, in 1829, set his course with the setting sun to fulfill the dream of his life: to settle his children around him in a land and clime of health and bounteous productions.

The 24th day of December, 1829 found them at 'Ross's Landing', now a city, Chattanooga. The 25th they were at 'Gunter's Landing,' now Guntersville. Mr. Gunter, a white man, sent an invitation to the family to take a feat-day's dinner. It was eagerly accepted upon grandmother's urging. A fine dinner was spread, and a ball-playing and pony racing was kept going all day. I kept close under my grandmother's arm. The first day of January found us at Huntsville, Alabama, among many old acquaintances, and greetings and welcomes met us all around.

But to return to the subject--the character of the man. I never knew him to talk nonsense. Jesting, idle tricks, low humor had no pleasure for him. The use of tobacco was eschewed in every form. He gave no time to gunning and fishing. I never saw him mad, and if he ever sang, it was to his own musing. to whistle in his presence was to wrong him. Give him solid talk and you would catch his attention. He was very mild in his speech and manners. No wrangles, no lawsuits, no violence or difficulties with neighbors, He rarely ever went to public gatherings, elections, or parades.

Fourth of July, Christmas and other holidays he enjoyed mostly at home with company--dinners of roasts, mince pies, puddings, doughnuts, cream toast, tea, coffee, and the never omitted egg nog.

He could never be induced to own slaves, and was a stickler for all consitutional guarantees. His children married all Southern born and bred people with the exception of his eldest son, Philip, who was married before coming to Virginia.

Captain Whitman, for so he was known and called, was a clear-headed man, and his opinions were respected an dheld in high regard. Ostentation, show, and pride were avoided by him. He was patient under reverses and trying circumstances. He abhorred the evil and aided and assested the good. He died in peace at his home and farm, with family, relations and friends around him in Bedford County, Tennessee.



page 396, Obits from Early Tenn. Newspapers: 1794-1851: Nashville Banner & Nashville Whig, Wed Oct. 1, 1834 - Capt. Daniel Whitman died in Bedford Co.

The only proof we have that Robert M. was the son of Daniel is the work by Farnham. daniel Whitman's obit in the Nashville paper on 1 Oct. 1834 only says he died, and does not name any survivors.

Perhaps if we can find Daniel Whitman's estate papers or will at new Market, Ala. where he lived, we might have a clue.

Lincoln County Tennessee was formed out of Bedford County in 1809. It is flanked by GILES to the West and FRANKLIN to the East, from which trilogy of Tennessee counties early population migrations flowed into MADISON COUNTY, ALABAMA, on the South. Family connections may frequently be found simultaneously in the four above localities.



VGM: "The Daniel Whiteman in Harrison County, W. Va. in 1812 is not ours. Our Daniel arrived in Meadville, Va. in Halifax, County on the North Carolina border in 1809. Probably lived with another "hospitable family while searching for claim, and then opened a tavern. His son, Philip Whitman, was an apothecary at Meadville, where he died.

CHAPTER Vl

DANIEL5 WHITMAN

S Capt. DanielS Whitman (b. 7 March 1765 Stow, Mass., d. 13 Sept. 1834 near
.
ShelLyville, Bedford Co., Tenn.), son of Zechariah4 and Elizabeth4 (Gates)
Whitman of Stow, Mass.; m. 6 May 1792 Sarah3(Sallie) Kast (b. 3 April 1772
Salem, Mass. d. 6 May 1863 New Market, Ala.), dt. Dr. Philip G. Jr.2 and
Sarah (McHard) Kast of Salem, Mass. and Derry, N.H.; - 10 c.

Micro Bio: Born Stow, Mass., 1765. Moved to Henniker, N.H., 1792,

lumberman; sold timbers to U.S. Navy for ship Constitu-
tion (Old Ironsides). To Hopkinton, N.H., 1796; to
Warner, N.H., 1799; opened retail store. Back to Hop-
inton, 1801; merchant. Sold out holdings, 1809; moved
to Meadsville, Halifax Co., Va. Found his investments in
timberlands to be inaccessible and worthless. Operated
hostelry; established horse farm; joined Baptist church.
Moved to Huntsville, Ala., 1829; to Bedford Co., Tenn.,
1833, where died 1834. Obit in National Banner [Tenn.],
1 Oct. 1834.

Proof: Named, with dates, as son of parents by Farnam in Descend-
ants of John Whitman of Weymouth; listed in town records,
_ _ _
Henniker, N.H., 1793; 1800 Census of Warner, N.H.; 1820
Census of Halifax Co., Va.; 1830 Census of Huntsville, Ala.;
1833 deed, Bedford Co., Tenn.
Sarah (Kast) Whitman baptized 12 April 1772 St. Peter's Church,
Salem, Mass.; named daughter of parents in baptismal records.
Named wife of Daniel Whitman in 1828 deed, Halifax Co., Va.

Dates of birth, death on gravestone, William F. Whitman family ~~enaw
cemetery near New Market, Ala. Children named by Farnam.

Early Years and Marriage

Daniel5 Wi~itman, the 13th and youngest son of Zechariah4 and Elizabeth (Gates) Whitman of Stow, Mass., was born in 1765 and was named for his Grandfather Gates. He grew up on his father's Assabet farm, but there is no record of his activities prior to his marriage. About 1786, he became involved in the mercantile business, traveling about New England, and it probably was in that capacity that he met Sallie Kast. After their marriage in 1792, they joined his brothers and sisters at Henniker, New Hampshi re where he started his career in the lumber business.

Lumber was in increasing demand after the Revolution as the towns kegan to grow in population. Most homes were constructed of wood, particularly in the coastal cities of Boston and New York. The New Hampshire forests had been used by the British for a hundred years to obtain masts for their sailing ships, and logging was not new to the area, but the majority of the activity had previously taken place along the Connecticut River or beside large streams which could be used to transport logs to the mills. The New Hampshire pioneers had huilt lumber mills on the edge of the forest, and then trees were sawed into slabs on the spot. A fortune was made by many men during this period, either in timber or in merchandise sold to lumberjacks who came to cut the trees.

Daniel's bride was not a stranger to New Hampshi re, as she had spent her youn-er years there. Her father, Dr. Philip Kast, Jr., had been an eminent physician and apothecary at Salem, Mass., but he remained a Royalist during the troubled times pre-ceding the Reyolution, and for the safety of his family fled with them in 1775 to Hopkinton, N.H., about six miles east of Henniker. A few years later, the Kasts moved to Derry, N.H., where Dr. Kast died in 1781, leaving his wife with five young children.

Sallie Kast was born at Salem, Hass. in 1722 and was baptized in St. Peter's (Anglican) Church which her father had served as warden for several years. She was aged 9 when her father died at Derry, and it is believed that her mother returned to her former home at Haverhill, Mass. with the children. It has not been determined where Sallie and Daniel's wedding took place, but she was aged 20 and he aged 27 when they married.

The New Hampshire Years

Daniel's brothers, Edward5 and John5 Whitman, were leading merchants in Henniker when he arrived there, and their brother-in-law, Timothy Gibson, had achieved great wealth in the lumber industry, as well as being a political leader. Gibson had built the largest two-story frame house in Henniker, and it became the center of activities for the Whitman family.

Daniel began to cut and sell timber. About that time, the United States Navy made plans to build its first three ships, and representatives were sent to New Hampshire to purchase the lumber needed for their construction. Daniel furnished the timbers for the frigate, Constitution, which was launched at Boston in 1797.

-

She was built of well-seasoned live oak, red cedar and hard pine, and the bolts which fastened her timbers, as well as the copper sheathing on the bottom, were made by Boston's silversmith, Paul Revere.

The Constitution earned her famous nickname after a sea battle with British ships during the War of 1812. American sailors, seeing enemy shells failing to pen-etrate the staunch oak sides of their ship, dubbed her "Old Ironsides". After being retired for over a century, she was brought out of mothballs in 1931, restored to her original appearance, and is now berthed permanently in Boston harbor as a museum open to the public.

Daniel began to combine merchandising with his timber business in 1793 and opened a retail store in Hennilcer. The Whitmans never missed attendance at church, and when the Meeting House burned in 1794, the congregation gathered at the Gibsons' large home for services. Daniel prospered and began to expand his mercantile business. In 17~l,, he moved Sallie and their three children to Hopkinton, a few miles east of I1enniker, where he opened another store. There were three churches in Hopkinton, two Congregationalist and one Baptist, and it may have been at that time that the Whitmans joined the Baptist church. They remained at Hopkinton for three years and then moved a few miles north to Warner, N.H.

Warner was at the edge of the forest and offered an appropriate outlet to sell goods to lumberjacks. Daniel opened another retail store, operated it for four years, and then moved back to Hopkinton. Sallie's brother-in-law and sister, Robert and Margaret (Kast) Molyneux, lived at Hopkinton, and when another son was born to the Whitmans in 1804, he was named Robert Molyneux Whitman. (The Molyneuxs also named a daughter Sarah Kast Molyneux, who years later married Daniel Whitman's nephew' Robert6 Gibson.)

The Migration to Virginia

While conducting his various businesses, Daniel Whitman came in contact with a group of speculators who had invested in lands in Virginia. They praised the un-touched, virgin forests of that state and induced Daniel to buy several tracts there. He decided to move to Virginia, and after selling off his New Hampshire holdings in 1809, sailed with Sallie and the children to Norfolk.

After reaching Virginia, Daniel began to search for his property, Winding his way westward, he left his family in the village of Meadsville, Halifax County, where they found hospitable friends. (Meadsville is no longer on the map, but it was a few niles northeast of present Danville.) After lengthy investigations, Daniel dis-coyered that the lands he had purchased were far back in the mountains and were in-accessible. The titles were fraudulent and worthless. Realizing that he had been victimized by the speculators, he settled down in Meadsville with his family to make a new start.

At first, Daniel operated the village hostelry, but it was not long before he was able to buy a farm. He stocked it with horses and cattle, but he never again became a person of substantial means. His New England background was shown in his refusal to own slaves, the workforce in the slaveholding South. Daniel had great reverance for the Bible, was a stickler for all Constitutional guarantees, and his opinions were highly respected by his neighbors. He also served as an officer in the milita, and thereafter was referred to as Captain Whitman.

As the years passed, eldest son, Philip Whitman, became the town's apothecary; eldest daughter, Elizabeth, married William P. Carr, the local schoolmaster; Daniel Jr. entered the mercantile business, and Robert studied medicine. But Daniel Sr. was not satisfied with life at Meadsville. Son Philip died, as did the husbands of two of his daughters, leaving each with children. The patriarch's one great wish was to have enough land to settle his family around him "in a climate of health and bounteous production." The opportunity came in 1829.

Daniel had been reared in the Congregational Church, and Sallie in the Anglican one. As neither existed at Meadsville in 1809, it probably was at that time that they joined the Baptist church. The Baptists had originated in Massachusetts as a sect of the Congregational Church but spit (followed Roger Williamsto Rhode Island), and eventually spread to the South. After the Revolution, the Baptist membership had doubled in Virginia. Whether the Whitmans became Baptists at Meadsville or earlier, all of their children were reared in the Baptist faith.

As the years passed, eldest son, Philip Whitman, became the town's apothecary; eldest daughter, Elizabeth, married William P. Carr, the local schoolmaster; Daniel Jr. entered the mercantile business, and Robert studied medicine. But Daniel Sr. was not satisfied with life at Meadsville. Son Philip died, as did the husbands of two of his daughters, leaving each with children. The patriarch's one great wish was to have enough land to settle his family around him "in a climate of health and bounteous production." The opportunity came in 1829.

The Alabama and Tennessee Years

When Alabama was opened for settlement after the War of 1812, settlers flocked in, and by 1829 its economy, based on cotton, was flourishing. A number of families who had left Meadsville to settle in the Huntsville area of northern Alabama sent word back to Virginia of the rich soil and warm weather that prevailed, and they urged their former neighbors to join them.

The promise of cheap land over the mountains and a more temperate climate was too great a temptation for Capt. Whitman to resist. Once again Sallie packed the family's belongings, and Capt. Whitman, still robust at age 64, led a wagon train west. Included in the caravan were bachelor sons, William and Dr. Robert Whitman; widowed daughters Elizabeth Carr and Eleanor Thornton with their children, and the younger teenaged sons, Walter and James Whitman. The married sons, Daniel Jr. and Edward, remained in Meadsville to join the family later.

The trek to Alabama was described by grandson, Harrison7 Carr, aged 11, as a "great and marvelous adventure." The wagons crossed the mountains from Meadsvile to Bristol, Va., where the party changed to boats to follow the Tennessee River to Alabama. They reached Ross's Landing, an Indian village without a single white settler, on Christmas Eve, 1829. (This outpost eventually developed into the city of Chattanooga, Tenn.) On Christmas Day, they traveled 25 miles farther downriver to Gunter's Landing in northeast Alabama. After they made camp, Mr. Gunter sent a cordial invitation to the travelers to "take a feast day's dinner" at his home. Gunter had married a Cherokee, and his tWQ beautiful half-Indian daughters presided at his well-laden table.

The Whitmans continued their river journey the next morning and reached Hunts-ville, "land of cotton," a week later. They were met by old friends from Virginia who welcomed them and shared a New Year's Day dinner with them. Capt. Whitman found a large home (hotel?) in which to live, and they were joined the next year by sons Daniel Jr. and Edward with their families. The 1830 Census shows Daniel Whitman, Sr. as the head of a household of twenty members, all accounted for in the family genealogy

Daniel, Jr. and William Whitman bought plantations near New Market, Ala., 12 miles northeast of Huntsville, while Edward settled 60 miles north at Falls Creek near Shelbyville in Bedford County, Tenn. Capt. Whitman and Sallie, accompanied by daugh-ter Eleanor and bachelor sons, moved to Bedford County in 1833, where Capt. Whitman purchased a plantation at Falls Creek near Edward. The next Fourth of July, all of his living children and grandchildren gathered there for a reunion. Harrison Carr remembered his grandfather as "mild in speech and manners, but a serious man who neYer jested. He never allowed his grandchildren to whistle in his presence, but he never expressed anger, either in words or in actions. He was a philosopher who lived in harmony with his neighbors and was held in high regard by them." As for his grand-mother, "the brave beauty and wit, Sallie Kast," she was so beloved that her name is still passed down through her descendants.

Capt. Whitman resided in his new home at Falls Creek only one year. He died on 13 Sept. 1834, leaving a large posterity -- 10 children and 60 grandchildren. To the day of his death, he refused to own a slave, yet fourteen of his grandsons served in the Confederate Army. Four were wounded, and three were killed.

Aftermath

Mrs. Eleanor (Whitman) Thornton married in Bedford Coutny as her second hus-band, Edward Darnaby. When the Darnabys moved to New Market, Ala. in 1843 to join her brothers, Daniel, Jr. and William Whitman, her mother, Mrs. Sallie (Kast) Whit-man, accompanied them. William's wife died in 1850, leaving seven young children, and $allie moved to his plantation home to assist them. She died there in 1863, at age 91, and was buried in William's family cemetery on Jack's Road, near New Market.

Mrs. Elizabeth6 (Whitman) Carr remained at Huntsville until 1864 when she moved to Winchester, Tenn. to reside with her son, Harison7 Carr, a lawyer and merchant at Winchester. Harrison was elected to the Tennessee legislature and was serving at the time of Secession. Both Daniel Whitman, dr. and William6 Whitman were prominent merchants at New Ma rket. Daniel, Jr. also served as the town's Post Maste r, and William was an officer in the New Market Baptist Church. Walter Whitman settled at Greenwood, La., and James Whitman went to Lowndesborough, Ala.

Edward Whitman died at his Falls Creek plantation in 1844, leaving four daugh-ters. His wife remarried and remained on the Falls Creek plantation, which passed to Edward's daughters. Dr. Robert M. Whitman married and moved to Lincoln County, Tenn., where he was a successful physician, planter, and occasional Baptist preacher in the Mulberry community. His sons led the Whitman migration on west to Texas. (See Chapter Vll.)










[beasley.ftw]

Daniel often dealt in lumber and timber. He sold timbers to U.S. Navy for the ship Constitution. (Old Ironsides)

In Virginia, he established a hostelry and a horse farm. He also joined the Baptist church.

Daniel is named, with dates, as son of parents by Farnam in Descendents of John Whitman of Weymoth; listed in town records, Henniker, N.H., 1793; 1800 census of Warner, N.H.; 1820 Census of Halifax Co., Va.; 1830 Census of Huntsville, Ala; 1833 deed, Bedford Co. Tenn,; Obit.

Refused to own slaves. Was an officer in the militia, thus, Captain Whitman.
Had been reared in the Congregational church


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I am happy to share information. The majority of this work is sourced with primary proof. Family Tree, however, chooses to use itself as the documentation source when you merge files. Contact me for the proper citation if one is missing. Please share w

1. Philip WHITMAN b. 1 Feb 1793, Henniker, New Hampshire; d. 20 Aug 1827, Meadsville, Halifac Co., Virginia.
2. Elizabeth WHITMAN b. 12 Apr 1795, Henniker, New Hampshire; d. 24 Sep 1826, Winchester, Tennessee.
3. Daniel WHITMAN, II b. 20 Apr 1796, Hopkinton, New Hampshire; d. 23 Apr 1847, New Market, Madison Co., Alabama.
4. Edward WHITMAN b. 27 Oct 1799, Warner , New Hampshire; d. 3 Oct 1844, Bedford Co., Tennessee.
5. Margaret Molineux WHITMAN b. 1 Sep 1801, Warner , New Hampshire; d. 1817, Halifax Co. Virginia.
6. 2. Robert Molineux WHITMAN, Rev. and Dr. b. 1 Sep 1804, Hopkinton, Merrimack, County,New Hampshire; d. 26 Mar 1873, Washington County, Texas; bur. Mar 1873, Farquhar Cemetery, Washington County, Texas.
7. Eleanor Chase WHITMAN b. 25 Aug 1806, Hopkinton, New Hampshire.
8. William Fenno WHITMAN, Col. b. 27 Mar 1809, Meadsville, Virginia.
9. Walter Carrington WHITMAN b. 19 Apr 1811, Meadsville, Virginia; d. 13 Aug 1852, Greenwood, Louisianna.
10. James Kast WHITMAN b. 13 Dec 1813, Meadsville, Virginia; d. 23 Mar 1880, Lowndesborough, Alabama.

[gurley.FTW]

Inherited the Alcock-Assibet farm and a portion of the livestock, at Stow and the Whitman grant at Henniker, N.H. from his father. Had 15 children, all of whom survived their parents. Seven of the fifteen moved to New Hampshire.

ZECHARIAH WHITMAN OF STOW

Zechariah4 Whitman (b. 13 Nov. 1722 Stow, Mass., d. 4 Jan. 1793 Stow, Mass.),
son of John3 and Margaret (Clark) (Damon) Whitman of Stow; m. 4 Feb. 1746
Elizabeth9Gates (b. 30 May 1724 Stow, Mass., d. 16 June 1791 Stow, Mass., dt.
Daniel and Anna Gates of Stow; - 15 c.

Micro Bio: Named in father's will. Received Alcock-Assabet
farm at Stow and Whitman grant at Henniker, N.H.
Soldier, Revolutionary War; listed in DAR Patriot
Index Both buried at Stow. Children named inDescendants _ John Whitman of Weymouth, Mass.

| Zechariah Whitman, the fourth son of John3 Whitman of Stow, married a neighbor, Elizabeth Gates, in 1746. Her grandfather, Stephen2 Gates, Jr., had been among the first settlers at Stow, and her father had served five times as Selectman. (SeeAppendix V.)

Zechariah and Elizabeth settled on his father's Alcock farm, one of the most
beautiful in Massachusetts. The sparkling Assabet River flowed through it and
emptied into the Concord River only a few miles from the site of Walden Pond, made infamous a century later by Henry David Thoreau. It was in this natural setting that Zechariah and Elizabeth reared their fifteen children, and all were educated.

When his father died in 1772, Zechariah inherited the Assabet farm outright.
It is also believed that John3 Whitman gave to Zechariah his New Hampshire land,
for the next year Zechariah's third daughter, Margaret, and her husband, Timothy

Gibson, departed immediately after their marriage for Henniker. They selected 2,500

acres of richly timbered acres, built a home in the village, and Timothy began to

cut and sell the timber. They were followed eventually to Henniker by six of her
brothers and sisters, but none of Zechariah4's brothers or their children settledthere.

The Revolutionary Period

Zechariah4 and Elizabeth (Gates) Whitman had lived a good and happy life for
thirty years when it was disrupted by the Revolution. The people of Massachusetts
- r

had been discontented for a decade over heavy taxes and illegal searches imposed by the British, but a crisis point was reached when patriots, refusing to pay tax on imported tea, dumped it into Boston's harbor. Other patriot groups began to form, and militiamen were trained on village greens for an eventual military confrontation.

In April 1775, the British commander at Boston heard that some secret munitions were stored at Concord and determined to seize them. Paul Revere rode through the night rousing the countryside - "to arms! to arms!" - and when word reached Stow, Zechariah Whitman, then aged 54, assembled with the local militia and marched to Concord Bridge to bar the British. There they were joined by remnants of Minute Men who had taken a stand at Lexington and escaped after being scattered by the British. When the King's troops arrived at Concord Bridge, the Minute Men held them off and forced them to retreat back to Boston, but the Revolution had begun.

By June, a Colonial army had been formed and was besieging Boston. The Conti-nental Congress appointed George Washington commander of the army, and he arrived in Massachusetts to take charge, accompanied by Gen. Horatio Gates (no kin to Zechariah's wife). Zechariah's second son, Lt. Thomas5 Whitman' volunteered under Gates's command, and Edward5 Whitman, then a young merchant at Boston, served under Col. Paul Revere. In New Hampshire, son-in-law Timothy Gibson was elected to the Provincial Congress in 1775, and then was made a Captain in the Continental Army. Also serving were sons-in-law Lt. John Smith and Capt. Solomon Taylor. All are listed in the DAR Patriot Index.

Aftermath

4

Zechariah and Elizabeth (Gates) Whitman lived long enough after the Revolution to see a new nation formed, its Constitution ratified, and the beginning of the migra-tion of the next generation away from the Puritan home of their forefathers. After 45 years of married life, Elizabeth died in 1791 and Zechariah in 1793. They were buried in the Stow cemetery.

Zechariah's will has not been found, but it is believed that as the eldest son,


Zechariah' Whitman, Jr., was established at Westminster, 25 miles west of Stow, he left the Alcock-Assabet farm to second son, Capt. Thomas5 Whitman, and divided the remainder of the New Hampshire grant (the tracts not bestowed on his daughters as dowries) among his other three sons, Edward5, John5 and Daniel5 Whitman.

Zechariah5 Whitman, Jr., whose first home at Westminster was a log cabin,
prospered by building other homes, and by the time of his father's death, he was third on a list of landed proprietors at Westminster. He built a hotel and many houses at the edge of town which hecame Whitman's Village. His daughter, Sarah6 Whitman, married Joseph Spaulding and moved to Caratunk, Maine. Their son, Joseph7 Spaulding, Jr. (1798-1885), became one of the most prominent men in the lumber in-dustry in Maine. He purchased over 30,000 acres of forest lands and established a sawmill at Richmond, running logs from the forests down the Kennebec River to the mill.

Timothy and Hargaret5 (Whitman) Gibson, who had begun the family migration to New Hampshire in 1773, removed to Brownfield, Maine in later years. Their sixth son, Abel6 Gibson, took over their Henniker homestead and was elected to the state legis-lature. One of his sons, Paris7 Gibson, graduated from Bowdoin College, moved to Minneapolis, Minn., and founded both the Cataract Flour Mill and the North Star Woolen Mill. He later developed the site of Great Falls, Montanna.

Daniel5 Whitman, the youngest son, joined his brothers and sisters at Henniker in 1792, and it was he who later removed to Virginia and founded the Southern branch of the Whitman family. (See Chapter Vl.)

Zechariah4 and Elizabeth (Gates) Whitman of Stow had 130 grandchildren.


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[gurley.FTW]

Elizabeth Gates, youngest child of daniel and Sarah Gates, married her neighbor, Zechariah Whitman. John whitman, father of Zechariah, had arrived in Stow in 1715 to manage the neaby Alcok-Assabet farm. The Gates and Whitman children had grown up as neighbors. The school for the town was held at the Gates house.


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1. Mercy WHITMAN
2. Zechariah WHITMAN b. 22 Aug 1747, Stow, Massachusetts; d. 14 Aug 1806, Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts.
3. Jane WHITMAN b. 1748; d. New York State.
4. Elizabeth WHITMAN b. 1750.
5. Thomas WHITMAN, Capt. b. 1751.
6. Edward WHITMAN b. 1753; d. Henniker, New Hampshire.
7. Margaret WHITMAN b. 14 Jan 1755, Stow, Massachusetts; d. 23 Jan 1838, Henniker, New Hampshire; bur. (no proof) Beside husband, burnt Measow, Brook Cemetery.
8. Mary WHITMAN b. 14 Jan 1756, Stow, Massachusetts; d. 29 Aug 1822, Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts.
9. Lucy WHITMAN b. 1758; d. Henniker, New Hampshire.
10. Anna WHITMAN b. 1760.
11. Sarah WHITMAN b. 1761.
12. Susannah WHITMAN b. 1762.
13. John WHITMAN b. 1764; d. Henniker, New Hampshire.
14. Lydia WHITMAN b. 1764.
15. 4. Daniel WHITMAN b. 7 Mar 1765, Stow, Massachusetts; d. 13 Sep 1834, Bedford County, Tennessee.