John Whitehead (1630 - 1696)

Born 1630 in Holderness, Yorkshire, England

Died 29 Sep 1696 at about age 66 in Fiskerton, Lincolnshire, England

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Biography

John was a Friend (Quaker)

This profile is part of the Whitehead Name Study.

John's birth date is uncertain but may have been in about 1630.^[1] He was born in Holderness, Yorkshire.^[1]

In about 1648 John joined the army. He became a Quaker in 1652 after hearing William Dewsbury speak at Scarborough, where John was stationed.^[2] He became one of the set of early Quaker missionaries known as the Valiant Sixty.^[3] Within months he was travelling with William Dewsbury in Yorkshire. The next year, he left the army.^[1]

In 1654 John came to Lincoln, where he spoke in the Cathedral. There he was "Knocked down by the Rude and Barbarous people" and a contemporary account of the incident states that he might have been "slain.. but that God stirred up some soldiers to take him by force from amongst them." He was held prisoner at Lincoln for four months.^[2]

John was again attacked at York in January 1660.^[1] From January 1661 to April 1663, he was in gaol at Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.^[1] Further periods of imprisonment followed.

In 1666 John wrote to Charles II, along with Ellis Hookes, Clerk of London Yearly Meeting, to try and secure the release of George Fox, who was then being detained at Scarborough. The king ordered Fox's release, and John went to Scarborough with the royal order.^[4]

In 1669 John moved to Swine, Yorkshire.^[1]

Before 1682 John married someone with the first name Elizabeth. They had two sons and a daughter.^[1]

In 1682, John was again imprisoned, in Lincoln; he was freed in late 1684. While he was incarcerated his family moved to Fiskerton near Lincoln.^[1] Two years later, in February 1686, John was among Quakers arrested at a meeting at Devonshire House, London: having refused to pay a fine of 13s 4d, he was held in Newgate Prison until early June.^[1]

For some years John was clerk of Lincoln Quaker Monthly and Quarterly Meetings.^[5]

During his life John wrote a number of Quaker pamphlets.^[1][6]

John died at Fiskerton, Lincolnshire of 29 September 1696^[1] and was buried at Lincoln Quaker Burial Ground on 1 October 1696, with his residence recorded as Fiskerton, Lincolnshire.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11} Richard L Greaves. 'Whitehead, John (c. 1630–1696)' in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, print and online 2004
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Susan Davies. Quakerism in Lincolnshire, Yard Publishing Services, Lincoln, 1989, p. 8
3. ↑ Ernest E Taylor. The Valiant Sixty, 3rd edition, William Sessions, 1988, p. 41
4. ↑ Susan Davies, Quakerism in Lincolnshire, p. 27
5. ↑ Susan Davies, Quakerism in Lincolnshire, p. 57
6. ↑ British Library catalogue, search results for John Whitehead 1630-1696, accessed 24 July 2020

• Greaves, Richard L. 'Whitehead, John (c. 1630–1696)' in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, print and online 2004, available online by subscription and via some libraries
• Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Vol. 61, pp. 102-103, entry for 'Whitehead, John (1630-1696)', Wikisource