Thomas Whitten Jr. (abt. 1748 - abt. 1827)

Born about 15 Apr 1748 in Scarborough, Cumberland, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Husband of Sarah Lucy Tenney — married 16 Mar 1788 in Scarborough, Cumberland, Maine, United States

Descendants

Died about 1827 at about age 78 in Newfield, York, Maine, United States

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Biography

Thomas Whitten Jr. was baptized on 15 Apr 1748 at the Second Parish, a Congregational church in Scarborough, Cumberland, Massachusetts Bay Colony (now in the state of Maine). He was the son of Thomas Whitten Sr. and Margaret McRoy.

Thomas married Sarah Tenney on 16 Mar 1778 in Scarborough.

Thomas is believed to have passed away sometime between the 1820 census enumeration and the death of his wife on 17 Jul 1827.

Revolutionary War Service

Thomas served as a private in Captain John Rice's Company in the 31st Regiment of Foot, commanded by Colonel Edmund Phinney. His father, Thomas Sr., and his brother, John, also served in this regiment and company.^[1] All three of their names appear amongst the enlisted on a payment return of Captain John Rice dated 29 Sep 1775.^[2]

Newfield Town History - An Aside

Newfield is bounded to the north by Parsonsfield, to the east by Limerick and Waterboro, to the south by Shapleigh and Acton, and to the west by Effingham, Strafford, New Hampshire. The tract of land that is now known as Newfield was officially designated as Washington Plantation on 30 Oct 1772. Paul McDonald and Zebulon Libby of Scarborough, Maine were two of the first three settlers of Washington Plantation. They cleared for themselves two lots in the upper northeast corner of Washington plantation in June 1777, planted some rye, built their log homes, and then returned to Scarborough to retrieve their families for settlement the following spring.

On 26 Feb 1794, Washington Plantation became officially incorporated as the town of Newfield, and so it has remained until this day. An official list of inhabitants of Newfield (then Washington Plantation) shows that Thomas Whitten (spelled "Whitton" in the record) continued to reside there. He was the only man on this list and in the 1790 census of Newfield, that carried the surname "Whitten". Moreover, lists of men who held town positions during the earliest days of Newfield are absent of the Whitten surname.

Perhaps important to note for the known intermarriage that the McDonald family had in Whitten lines, is that Newfield pioneer, Paul McDonald was enumerated at Washington Plantation just before Thomas Whitten's name appears in 1790. Although Paul McDonald's name was not provided in the list of residents that was taken in 1791, there is no doubt he stayed in Newfield until his death. Woodford Clayton notes in his book that the grave of Paul Mcdonald was situated on his property about 1 mile north of the village of Newfield. All of the preceding information was adapted from "The History of York County Maine.^[3]

Census Enumerations

• 1790 Washington Plantation, York, Maine Thomas was living in the area that would become Newfield, York, Maine just four years later. Thomas' household consisted of himself (1 male over 16); 3 males under 16; and 3 females. ^[4]
• 1800 Limerick, York, Maine Thomas lived nearby his sisters, Mary Dearborn and Margaret Beddell, at the time of this enumeration. His household consisted of himself and his wife (age 26-44 years); 1 male and 1 female (age 10-15 years); 1 male and 1 female (under 10 years).^[5]
• 1810 Limerick, York, Maine Thomas was enumerated in Limerick (a neighboring town of Newfield) this census year. His son, Solomon lived nearby. Thomas' household consisted of 1 male and 1 female (age 26-44 years); 1 male and 1 female (age 10-15 years); and 2 females and 1 male (under 10 years).^[6]
• 1820 Newfield, York, Maine This is the last enumeration in which Thomas appears. His household consisted of 1 male and 1 female (over 45 years); 2 males (age 26-44 years); and 1 female (under 10 years). It is interesting to note that the transcriptionist of this census indicated that there were 3 people in Thomas' household that were "foreigners not naturalized". Unfortunately, this additional page has not been included in the Family Search or Ancestry databases for verification.^[7]

Research Notes

• There may be a familial relationship between Thomas, Thomas Whitten and Bathsheba Whitten. See Bathsheba's page for an explanation
• Richard and James Whitten appear on a list of Cornish, Maine inhabitants in 1794; around the same time that Thomas lived in Newfield, just one town away.

Sources

1. ↑ United States Rosters of Revolutionary War Soldiers and Sailors, 1775-1783. Massachusetts, vol 17, Whidden, James - Zyranius, Christopher; citing various published state rosters. Entry for Thomas Whitten, Jr. Digital Images: Family Search. Image 274 of 1044. Accessed 29 July 2022. Revolutionary War Service
2. ↑ Collections of the Maine Historical Society. United States: The Society, 1896. Digital Images: Google Books; pages 182-183. Accessed 9 Aug 2022. Enlisted Soldiers in the 31st Regiment of Foot
3. ↑ Clayton, W. Woodford. History of York County, Maine: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. United States: Higginson Book Company, 1880; pages 347-353. Digital Images: Google Books. Accessed 16 Sep 2022. Newfield, Maine
4. ↑ United States Census, 1790. Washington Plantation, York, Maine, United States. Thomas Whitten; page number 241; line number 15703. NARA microfilm publication series M637. Records of the Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration. Digital Images: Family Search. Image 1 of 1. Accessed 28 Jul 2022. 1790 US Census
5. ↑ United States Census, 1800. Limerick, York, Maine, United States. Thomas Wheeton; page 851, line 17. NARA microfilm publication series M32. Records of the Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration. Digital Images: Family Search. Image 4 of 8. Accessed 28 Jul 2022. 1800 US Census
6. ↑ United States Census, 1810. Limerick, York, Maine, United States. Thomas Whitten; page 1074, line 18. NARA microfilm publication series M252. Records of the Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration. Digital Images: Family Search. Image 7 of 8. Accessed 28 Jul 2022. 1810 US Census
7. ↑ United States Census, 1820. Newfield, York, Maine, United States. Thomas Whitten; page 481, line 39. NARA microfilm publication series M33. Records of the Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration. Digital Images: Family Search. Image 4 of 5. Accessed 28 Jul 2022. 1820 US Census