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The Whitney family is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 family notable for their social prominence, wealth, business enterprises and philanthropy founded by John Whitney (1592-1673) who came from London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 to Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown, Massachusetts

The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,986 at the 2000 census....
 in 1635. There are a number of very prominent members of this family including inventor Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney

Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known as the inventor of the cotton gin. This was one of the key inventions of the industrial revolution and shaped the economy of the antebellum South....
. .

prominence of the New York branch of the Whitney family began with William Collins Whitney (1841-1904).






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The Whitney family is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 family notable for their social prominence, wealth, business enterprises and philanthropy founded by John Whitney (1592-1673) who came from London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 to Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown, Massachusetts

The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,986 at the 2000 census....
 in 1635. There are a number of very prominent members of this family including inventor Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney

Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known as the inventor of the cotton gin. This was one of the key inventions of the industrial revolution and shaped the economy of the antebellum South....
. .

The New York Whitneys


Rise to prominence

The prominence of the New York branch of the Whitney family began with William Collins Whitney (1841-1904). Born in Conway, Massachusetts
Conway, Massachusetts

Conway is a New England town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,809 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield, Massachusetts metropolitan area....
, he was a younger brother to Boston industrialist Henry Melville Whitney
Henry Melville Whitney

Henry Melville Whitney was an American industrialist, the founder of the West End Street Railway Company of Boston, Massachusetts, and later the Dominion Coal Company Ltd....
 (1839-1923). William Collins Whitney became an extremely wealthy businessman who made the Whitney name synonymous with thoroughbred horse racing in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
.

Horse racing

The Whitney Handicap
Whitney Handicap

The Whitney Handicap is an United States graded stakes race handicap race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles....
 at Saratoga Race Course
Saratoga Race Course

Saratoga Race Course is a famous horse-racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York, New York, United States. It opened on August 3, 1863, and is the oldest organized sporting venue of any kind in the United States....
 is named in the family's honor. Whitney-owned horses have won every major race in the United States including multiple wins at the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby

The Kentucky Derby is a graded stakes race for three year-old Thoroughbreds, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival....
, Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes

The Preakness Stakes is an United States Graded stakes race 1-3/16 mile thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses, held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland....
, and the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes

The Belmont Stakes is a prestigious United States Graded stakes race held yearly in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The race is the third and final leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, following five weeks after the Kentucky Derby, and three weeks after the Preakness Stakes....
. Members of the family also maintained stables and breeding facilities in Newmarket (in Suffolk
Suffolk

Suffolk is a Non-metropolitan counties of England of Historic counties of England in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south....
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
), where they won important races including the prestigious Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby

The Derby Stakes, known colloquially as The Derby or internationally as the Epsom Derby, is considered one of the most prestigious flat thoroughbred horse races in the world....
.

A number of the New York Whitney family members were owners of thoroughbred racing operations under various names including Greentree Farm in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the List of United States cities by population in the United States. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World," it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region....
. Today, Whitney family members remain involved with horse racing, notably in 2004 when Marylou Whitney
Marylou Whitney

Marylou Whitney is a prominent socialite. Whitney has many seasonal residences, first and foremost her "Cady Hill" estate in Saratoga Springs New York, a massive camp in the Adirondacks, a farm near Lexington, Kentucky, a winter home in Florida and a residence in Alaska where her current husband is from....
 apologized on national television for denying Smarty Jones
Smarty Jones

Smarty Jones is a thoroughbred race horse, and winner of the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.He is a third-generation descendant of Mr....
 the U.S. Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing

The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a thoroughbred racehorse....
 after her colt Birdstone
Birdstone

Birdstone is an United States Thoroughbred horse racing best known for winning the 2004 Belmont Stakes.Owned and horse breeding by Marylou Whitney of Whitney family racing fame, Birdstone had won the Champagne Stakes , a leading race for two-year-olds, at Belmont Park in 2003, but had not been a factor in the first two Triple Crown of Thor...
 won the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes

The Belmont Stakes is a prestigious United States Graded stakes race held yearly in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The race is the third and final leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, following five weeks after the Kentucky Derby, and three weeks after the Preakness Stakes....
.

Other endeavors

In addition to horse racing, a number of Whitney family members were important financiers and business owners, statesmen, philanthropist
Philanthropist

A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable organization....
s. Joan Whitney Payson
Joan Whitney Payson

Joan Whitney Payson was an United States heiress, businesswoman, philanthropist, patron of the arts and art collector, and a member of the prominent Whitney family....
, an avid sportswoman, was the first owner of the New York Mets Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of play in American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between them since 1903 ....
 team from its founding in 1962 until her death in 1975. The Whitney Museum of American Art
Whitney Museum of American Art

The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", harbors one of the most important Collection of 20th century United States art....
 in New York City
New York City

The City of New York is the List of United States cities by population in the United States, while the New York metropolitan area ranks among the List of urban areas by population....
 was founded by a Whitney-by-marriage, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney

Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City....
.

Prominent descendants of John Whitney

  • Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney
    Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney

    Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney was an United States businessman, film producer, writer, and government official, as well as the owner of a leading stable of Thoroughbred horse race....
     (1899-1992)
  • Dorothy Payne Whitney
    Dorothy Payne Whitney

    Dorothy Payne Whitney was an United States-born social activist and philanthropist and a member of the prominent Whitney family....
     (1887-1968)
  • Eli Whitney
    Eli Whitney

    Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known as the inventor of the cotton gin. This was one of the key inventions of the industrial revolution and shaped the economy of the antebellum South....
     (1765-1825)
  • Flora Payne Whitney
    Flora Payne Whitney

    Flora Payne Whitney, also known as Flora Whitney Miller , was a wealthy socialite, art collector, and patron of the arts. She was the eldest daughter of Harry Payne Whitney, a sportsman and heir to the Whitney family fortune, and Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, heiress to a substantial part of the Vanderbilt family fortune....
     (1897-1986)
  • Harry Payne Whitney
    Harry Payne Whitney

    Harry Payne Whitney was an American businessman, thoroughbred horsebreeder, and member of the prominent Whitney family....
     (1872-1930)
  • Henry Melville Whitney
    Henry Melville Whitney

    Henry Melville Whitney was an American industrialist, the founder of the West End Street Railway Company of Boston, Massachusetts, and later the Dominion Coal Company Ltd....
     (1839-1923)
  • Henry Mitchell Whitney (1843-1911)
  • Joan Whitney Payson
    Joan Whitney Payson

    Joan Whitney Payson was an United States heiress, businesswoman, philanthropist, patron of the arts and art collector, and a member of the prominent Whitney family....
     (1903-1975)
  • John Hay Whitney
    John Hay Whitney

    John Hay Whitney , colloquially known as "Jock" Whitney, was U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, publisher of the New York Herald Tribune, and a member of the Whitney family....
     (1905-1982)
  • Pauline Payne Whitney
    Pauline Payne Whitney

    Pauline Payne Whitney , was an United States heiress and a member of the prominent Whitney family.She was born in New York City, New York, the daughter of William C....
     (1874-1916)
  • Payne Whitney
    Payne Whitney

    William Payne Whitney was a wealthy United States businessman and member of the influential Whitney family. The son of William C. Whitney and Flora Payne, and younger brother to Harry Payne Whitney, he was known throughout his life by his middle name....
     (1876-1927)
  • William Collins Whitney (1841-1904)


By marriage:
  • Mary Elizabeth Altemus
    Liz Whitney Tippett

    Mary Elizabeth Whitney Person Tippett was a wealthy American socialite and philanthropist who was a champion Equestrianism and for more than fifty years, a prominent owner/breeder of Thoroughbred horse racing....
     (1906-1988)
  • Charles T. Barney
    Charles T. Barney

    Charles Tracy Barney was the president of the Knickerbocker Trust Company, the collapse of which shortly before Barney's death sparked the Panic of 1907....
     (1851-1907)
  • Betsey Cushing
    Betsey Cushing Roosevelt Whitney

    Betsey Roosevelt Whitney , was an United States philanthropist, the ex-wife of James Roosevelt , and later wife of American millionaire and U.S....
     (1908-1998)
  • Henry F. Dimock
    Henry F. Dimock

    Henry F. Dimock was a lawyer in New York City who was closely associated with the Whitney family business interests.Dimock was born in South Coventry, Connecticut, the son of Timothy and Laura F....
     (1842-1911)
  • Leonard Knight Elmhirst (1893-1974)
  • Helen Julia Hay
    Helen Hay Whitney

    Helen Julia Hay Whitney was an American poet, writer, horse racing owner/breeder, socialite, and philanthropist. A member by marriage of the prominent Whitney family of New York, she was the daughter of Clara Louise Stone and her husband, John Hay who served as the United States Ambassador to Great Britain and United States Secretary of Stat...
     (1875-1944)
  • Almeric Hugh Paget, 1st Baron Queenborough (1861-1949)
  • Marie Louise Schroeder
    Marylou Whitney

    Marylou Whitney is a prominent socialite. Whitney has many seasonal residences, first and foremost her "Cady Hill" estate in Saratoga Springs New York, a massive camp in the Adirondacks, a farm near Lexington, Kentucky, a winter home in Florida and a residence in Alaska where her current husband is from....
     (b. 1925)
  • Willard Dickerman Straight
    Willard Straight

    Willard Dickerman Straight was an United States investment banker, publisher, reporter and diplomat....
     (1880-1918)
  • Gertrude Vanderbilt
    Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney

    Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City....
      (1875-1942)


External links

  • - dedicated to the scholarly research of Whitney families around the world and throughout history.