Sarah Elizabeth Whitney

The following information is from Find A Grave.com: "Sarah had a happy laugh. Her hair was black and naturally curly. She wore it piled high and held in place with small shell combs. She did not have a single grey hair until she was almost seventy. Sarah was small of bone and stature and very slender and girlish in bearing all her life."

1880 Census Parowan, Iron, Utah: New Samuel Whitney 28, blacksmith, Sarah E Whitney 25, Sarah R Whitney 7, Mary J Whitney 5, William F Whitney 2, Rachael G Whitney, 9 months.

1900 Census Parowan, Utah: New S. Whitney 50, blacksmith, Sarah E Whitney 44, 9 children, 7 living. William F Whitney 23, Rachel G Whitney 20, Minnie Whitney 17, Mabel Whitney 13, Samuel J Whitney 11, Bertha Whitney 8 Own home.

1910 Census Parowan, Iron, Utah: New S. Whitney 59, blacksmith, own shop, Sarah E Whitney 55, 9 children, 7 living, Samuel J Whitney 21, blacksmith, Bertha Whitney 19.

1920 Census Parowan, Iron, Utah: New S. Whitney 68, janitor, county building, Sarah E Whitney 64, Own home on Main 1st North.

1930 Census Parowan, Iron, Utah: Sarah E Whitney, 75, widow, Own home 1st North

Bio by Ilene Hanks Kingsbury (part of bio)

At the age of fifteen [1870], Sarah went to the home of Bishop William H Dame who was then operating the Deseret Telegraph Company's office on Parowan. Mr Dame was also the commander of the Parowan Military District and was called Colonel by most people. Sarah learned to operate the telegraph machines. At the age of sixteen she took over the complete management of the telegraph office, which was located in the home of the Bishop, and slept alternately with each of his three wives, as no other place was furnished her. This she did for one year.

In her seventeenth year Sarah married New Samuel Whitney, Iron County's first white child, in the old Endowment House in Salt Lake City. After her marriage Sarah continued to operate the telegraph office, now moved to her own home, and until her first child was two years old. She had had the office moved into her home on the corner of Main and First North streets so that she could "tend the wire" and her own household too. In the meantime she had hired as her assistant, Miss Amy Webster of Cedar City, the other two assistants having died. Their names were Lizzie Miller and Della Barton. After over five years of continuous service she gave up the telegraph office to Robert Quarom, who held the office until the telephone took its place."

1932 Obituary: Parowan, Iron, Utah: Widow Of Parowan's First Born Child Died....Death came suddenly and unexpectedly on Wednesday evening to Sarah Elizabeth Gurr Whitney, 77, widow of New S. Whitney who was the first white child born in Parowan. Mrs. Whitney became suddenly ill at an early hour on Wednesday morning and throughout the day she suffered excruciating pain in the region of her heart. Toward the evening the pain subsided somewhat and before eight o'clock she passed away. Despite her advanced years she has enjoyed exceptionally good health and only a few days before when she was in the Times office to tell us about her recent birthday celebration, she boasted of how well she felt and how long she expected to live, lamenting at the same time the condition of her two brothers. The doctor was uncertain as to the cause of her sudden illness and death.

Mrs. Whitney was born in Sydney, Australia, February 13, 1855, the daughter of Wm. and Elizabeth Barker Gurr. She came with her family and a hundred other saints to Utah in 1857. They crossed the ocean on the sailing vessel Jimiford [Jenny Ford] and were on the ocean 103 days. Fire broke out on the vessel three times during the journey and it grounded on a coral reef once, so they came very near not getting here.

She learned telegraphy as a young girl under Josiah Rogersen, Southern Utah's veteran telegrapher, and she served as an operator for about five years in Parowan, Cedar City, and Beaver. She married New S. Whitney on July 29, 1872. Two sons and five daughters survive her, Wm. F., Samuel J., Mrs. Jane Adams, Mrs. Eva Richards, Mrs. Minnie Lowder, Mrs. Bertha Mitchell all of Parowan and Mrs. Mabel Hanks of Salt Lake City. Forty four grand children and twenty nine great grand children as well as two brothers, Wm. H. and John H. Gurr and a sister, Mary Pendleton also survive her. She was an active church and community worker and had served under three presidents as secretary of the Relief Society. She was a Relief Society teacher at the time of her death and a loyal member of the Daughters of the Pioneers organization.

Funeral service is being held this afternoon at the East Ward chapel. With the community the Times extends sympathy and condolence to the bereaved family at this time.

Utah; Parowan Times, Friday, February 26, 1932, Front Page.

Siblings:

William Heber Gurr born Australia

Lovinna Rosetta Gurr Matheson

VT Comp. many years: Sarah Hulet Wimmer

Parents:

William Gurr (1834 - 1913)

Sarah Elizabeth Barker Gurr (1837 - 1902)

Spouse:

New Samuel Whitney (1850 - 1926)

Children:

Sarah Rosetta Whitney (1873 - 1887)

Mary Jane Whitney Adams (1875 - 1947)

William Francis Whitney (1877 - 1949)

Rachel Whitney Bennett (1879 - 1957)

Minnie Whitney Lowder (1882 - 1965)

Mabel Whitney Hanks (1886 - 1965)

Samuel James Whitney (1889 - 1956)

Bertha Whitney Mitchell (1891 - 1972)

Marion Gurr Whitney (1894 - 1895)

Siblings:

Sarah Elizabeth Gurr Whitney (1855 - 1932)

William Heber Gurr (1856 - 1933)

Eliza Jane Gurr Mickelson (1859 - 1896)

Mary B Gurr Pendleton (1862 - 1947)

John Henry Gurr (1864 - 1932)

Susan Maria Gurr Matheson (1867 - 1927)

Enoch Alonzo Gurr (1869 - 1886)

Lovinna R. Gurr Matheson (1872 - 1918)

James Edward Gurr (1874 - 1876)

Maintained by: FamilyFirst

Originally Created by: Cracraft Proud

Record added: Sep 08, 2005

Find A Grave Memorial# 11709351