Thank you Keith for your response. Yes, I’ve read the Purdy information, but I’ve never seen sourced proof, such as baptism records, to verify her findings. Many early genealogists also claimed that the Wetmore line descended from Francis’ brother Thomas, but a DNA project clearly proves this is not true. As the organizer of this project has told me, either Francis Whitmore or Thomas Wetmore was a son of John, [b. c.1589] but not both! The study also proves that my husband is descended from Francis.
Since no one seems to be able to find English baptismal records for Francis b. 1625, and John left no will in which he leaves a legacy to his named sons, how are we to know that he truly had sons of those names?
It could be true. For many generations, the Whitmore family continued a tradition of naming their sons John and Francis. In my records, I have 21 Johns and 17 Francises in America, (and two possible Francis links in England) plus a few girls named Frances, which leads me to believe Francis’ father might truly have been Francis or John.
Who was John’s father? Someone named Francis? I’ve read he could be the son of a Thomas, but there are lots of John Whitmores at the time; which one is “ours?"
I’ve found no verification of the story about Sir George either. Canadian records don’t seem to know about him.
Also, John did NOT marry Joanna Kerrich in England. She was the widow of John Jessup. John Whitmore married her as his second wife, in Stamford, Connecticut, before he was killed by Indians. His first wife, the father of his children, is unknown. Joanna was born in the Netherlands where her Puritan family was living before relocating to the colonies in America.
Keith, I certainly do appreciate your efforts. I will look for Francis’ birth information in Tring, and John’s in Bristol, England. Maybe those are verifiable leads. I’m skeptical of other peoples’ genealogies (e.g. even Purdy) and take the information as clues until verified by church or community records.
I’ll slog on until I break down this brick wall!
Linda Whitmore
Your question on WikiTree G2G has been answered by Keith Guillory:
There is a book entitled, “The Whitmore Genealogy A Record of the Descendents (sic.) of Francis Whitmore” published in 1907 by Jessie Whitmore Patten Purdy. (Available free on-line) According to this book, the American family of Whitmores where from the Staffordshire England Whitmores. Tradition says that two brothers, Sir George and John, came to this country in the early 1630’s. Sir George, a bachelor was a government officer in Nova Scotia, and lived at Halifax. While on a voyage from Halifax to Massachusetts, supposedly to settle an estate on his brother, he was drowned
Francis Whitmore’s father, John Whitmore was born about 1589 in Bristol, Somersetshire, England. He was married in England to Joanna Kerrich. Their son was Thomas, born in 1615. Their other children were Anne, born in 1621, Mary, born in 1623, Francis born in 1625 in Tring England, and John, born in 1627.
