Henry Melville Whitney
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Henry Melville Whitney (October 22, 1839 – January 25, 1923) was an American industrialist, the founder of the West End Street Railway Company of Boston, Massachusetts, and later the Dominion Coal Company Ltd. and the
Dominion Iron and Steel Company The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation (also DOSCO) was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company. Incorporated in 1928 and operational by 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO), which was a merger o ...
Ltd. of
Sydney, Nova Scotia Sydney is a former city and urban community on the east coast of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Sydney was founded in 1785 by the British, was incorporated as a city in 1904, and dissolv ...
. He was also president of the
Metropolitan Steamship Company The Metropolitan Steamship Company was for 75 years one of the chief transportation links between New York City and Boston, Massachusetts. It was closely associated with the Whitney family until its acquisition by Charles W. Morse in 1906. Even af ...
, long an important transportation link between Boston and
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.


Early life

Henry Whitney was born on October 22, 1839 in
Conway, Massachusetts Conway is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,761 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Conway was first settled by English colonists ...
to Brigadier General
James Scollay Whitney James Scollay Whitney (May 19, 1811 – October 24, 1878) was an American business executive and politician. He was the father of Henry Melville Whitney and William Collins Whitney, founders of the Whitney family business interests. Early life W ...
(1811–1878) and Laurinda Collins. Henry's well known younger brother was the financier
William Collins Whitney William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier and a prominent descendant of the John Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Clev ...
(1841–1904), who served as
Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...
in the first administration (1885–1889) of President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
. His sister Lucy Collins "Lily" Whitney married Charles T. Barney, who became the president of the
Knickerbocker Trust Company The Knickerbocker Trust was a bank based in New York City that was, at one time, among the largest banks in the United States. It was a central player in the Panic of 1907. History The bank was chartered in 1884 by Frederick G. Eldridge, a frie ...
. Another sister, Susan Collins Whitney, married
Henry F. Dimock Henry Farnam Dimock (March 28, 1842 – April 10, 1911) was a lawyer in New York City who was closely associated with the Whitney family business interests. Early life and education Dimock was born in South Coventry, Connecticut, the son of Dr. ...
. Whitney was educated at
Williston Seminary Williston Northampton School (simply referred to as Williston) is a private, co-educational, day and boarding college-preparatory school in Easthampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1841. History Williston Seminary was ...
in East Hampton, Massachusetts. Whitney was said to have been a personally pleasant and genial man who had hearing difficulties from childhood.


Family

His family was descended from
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...
s including John Whitney of
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, who settled in 1635 at
Watertown, Massachusetts Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and is part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Square, and the West End. Watertown ...
. Through his mother, he was a descendant of William Bradford (1590–1657), the 2nd, 5th, 7th, 9th & 12th
Governor of Plymouth Colony The territory of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, one of the fifty United States, was settled in the 17th century by several different English colonies. The territories claimed or administered by these colonies encompassed a much ...
''The fast and thanksgiving days of New England''
by William Deloss Love, Houghton, Mifflin and Co., Cambridge, 1895.
and signer of the
Mayflower Compact The Mayflower Compact, originally titled Agreement Between the Settlers of New Plymouth, was the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the men aboard the ''Mayflower,'' consisting of separatist Puritans, adventurers, an ...
.Eugene Aubrey Stratton, ''Plymouth Colony: Its History and People, 1620-1691,'' (Salt Lake City: Ancestry Publishing, 666), p. 413


Career

He began his business career as a clerk in a bank in Conway in 1856. In 1859, he went to Boston, where he was a clerk in the Bank of Mutual Redemption. He then worked as a clerk in the office of the navy agent at the Boston
Custom House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting c ...
in 1860–1861. Upon the outbreak of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
in 1861, Whitney went to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and engaged in the shipping business.''The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography'' Vol. X, p. 155. New York: James T. White & Company, 1909. Reprint of 1900 edition. In 1866, Whitney returned to Boston and was appointed agent of the
Metropolitan Steamship Company The Metropolitan Steamship Company was for 75 years one of the chief transportation links between New York City and Boston, Massachusetts. It was closely associated with the Whitney family until its acquisition by Charles W. Morse in 1906. Even af ...
, of which his father was president. This concern operated steamships on the "outside line" between Boston and New York around
Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...
.


Metropolitan Steamship Company

Upon his father's death on October 24, 1878, Whitney was elected his successor as president of the Metropolitan Steamship Company, retaining the position of agent at Boston. In June 1890 the Metropolitan Steamship Company placed the new iron steamer in service between Boston and New York. The 2,706-ton, vessel was built by
William Cramp & Sons William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company (also known as William Cramp & Sons Ship & Engine Building Company) of Philadelphia was founded in 1830 by William Cramp, and was the preeminent U.S. iron shipbuilder of the late 19th century. Company hi ...
at
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. ''H.M. Whitney'' was
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
of the Metropolitan fleet until she was run down and sunk by the steamer ''Ottoman'' in Boston harbor on September 28, 1892. There were no deaths, and ''H.M. Whitney'' was later refloated and, after reconditioning, returned to service. It had another collision in 1898, with the
schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
''Ira D. Sturgis'', and again on November 5, 1908 when she attempted to avoid a collision with a
tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...
and four
barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...
s off Hallett's Point and ran aground on the east end of Ward's Island and sank. In both instances, the ship was repaired and continued on its journey. In 1906, Charles W. Morse acquired control of the Company, placing it under the control of the Consolidated Steamship Company in January 1907. Morse crashed in the
Panic of 1907 The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic or Knickerbocker Crisis, was a financial crisis that took place in the United States over a three-week period starting in mid-October, when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from ...
, however. In 1911, the Metropolitan Steamship Company and the Maine Steamship Company (a New York City-
Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...
, operator) merged with the Eastern Steamship Company to form the Eastern Steamship Corporation. The line went into
receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in ca ...
in 1914, but emerged in 1917 as
Eastern Steamship Lines Eastern Steamship Lines was a shipping company in the United States that operated from 1901 to 1955. It was created through successive mergers by Wall Street financier and speculator Charles W. Morse.Robert F. Bruner and Sean D. Carr, ''The Panic ...
. Service on Eastern's Metropolitan Line was maintained until 1941. Whitney retired from the board of the Metropolitan Steamship Company in 1909.


West End Street Railway Company

In 1886, Whitney established the West End Street Railway Company, with himself as president, as a combination of the five street railways of the Boston area. By the next year it had consolidated ownership of a number of horse-drawn streetcar lines, composing a fleet of 7,816 horses and 1,480 rail vehicles. As the system grew, Whitney chose to deploy electric propulsion systems after visiting
Frank Sprague Frank Julian Sprague (July 25, 1857 in Milford, Connecticut – October 25, 1934) was an American inventor who contributed to the development of the electric motor, electric railways, and electric elevators. His contributions were especially i ...
and witnessing the Richmond, Virginia system in action. A section of track was used to test the Bentley-Knight underground power line, but it was abandoned because of failures and safety concerns (especially after the electrocution of a team of horses in 1889). After competing in operational tests with the Sprague streetcar system, the
Thomson-Houston The Thomson-Houston Electric Company was a manufacturing company which was one of the precursors of the General Electric company. History The Thomson-Houston Electric Company was formed in 1882 in the United States when a group of Lynn, Massa ...
company was chosen for system-wide deployment of overhead wires.History of electrification of the West End Street Railway


Whitney coal syndicate

In 1889, Whitney and Frederick Stark Pearson, chief engineer of the West End Street Railway Company, formed the Whitney coal syndicate with
Benjamin Franklin Pearson Benjamin Franklin Pearson, (April 4, 1855 – January 31, 1912) was a lawyer, entrepreneur and political figure in Nova Scotia, Canada. He represented Colchester County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1901 to 1911 as a Liberal memb ...
of the People's Heat and Light Company of
Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...
. The group purchased one coal mine and obtained options on others south of
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
in eastern
Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...
. Premier
William Stevens Fielding William Stevens Fielding, (November 24, 1848 – June 23, 1929) was a Canadian Liberal politician, the seventh premier of Nova Scotia (1884–96), and the federal Minister of Finance from 1896 to 1911 and again from 1921 to 1925. Early life ...
and the Liberal provincial administration favored Whitney's entry into the coal business because his steamships and street-railway electric generators consumed large quantities of coal. The Whitney syndicate was offered an unprecedented 99-year lease at a fixed royalty; the group exercised its options, acquiring most of the existing
bituminous coal Bituminous coal, or black coal, is a type of coal containing a tar-like substance called bitumen or asphalt. Its coloration can be black or sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. It ...
mines of eastern Cape Breton Island and co-opting such local figures as
John Stewart McLennan John Stewart McLennan (5 November 1853 – 15 September 1939) was a Conservative member of the Senate of Canada. He was born in Montreal, Quebec and became an industrialist and publisher. The son of Hugh McLennan and Isabella Stewart, he was ...
and
David MacKeen David MacKeen (September 20, 1839 – November 13, 1916) was a Canadian surveyor, mine manager, politician, and the 11th Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. Life Born in Mabou, he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada for the riding ...
. This process took some months, and Whitney was not ready to consolidate operations at Sydney until early 1893. People's Heat and Light after it was incorporated in 1893, with Whitney as president, and B.F. Pearson as secretary.


Dominion Coal Company

On February 1, 1893, the Dominion Coal Company Ltd. (DOMCO) was incorporated with Whitney as president, B.F. Pearson as secretary and F.S. Pearson as chief engineer. Early investors in this enterprise included Whitney's younger brother,
William C. Whitney William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier and a prominent descendant of the John Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Clev ...
; his brothers-in-law,
Henry F. Dimock Henry Farnam Dimock (March 28, 1842 – April 10, 1911) was a lawyer in New York City who was closely associated with the Whitney family business interests. Early life and education Dimock was born in South Coventry, Connecticut, the son of Dr. ...
and Charles T. Barney; and Almeric H. Paget, who later married William's daughter Pauline. The new company quickly effected numerous efficiencies and improvements, and production was quadrupled within a decade. There were, however, costly mistakes, prominent among them the tendency to become locked into low-price contracts (such as to Whitney's companies), thus missing a large market at higher prices. By 1901, some 90 per cent of its output was committed to such low-price contracts. The company made a large public offering of stock, which tumbled in price when Whitney failed to get the American import duty on coal removed or at least reduced. Whitney expanded operations at Sydney with the organization in March 1899 of the
Dominion Iron and Steel Company The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation (also DOSCO) was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company. Incorporated in 1928 and operational by 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO), which was a merger o ...
Ltd. (DISCO), which had financial backing in both Canada and the United States. Whitney was joined in the new enterprise by his long-time business friends - F.S. Pearson, B.F. Pearson, W.C. Whitney, C.T. Barney, H.F. Dimock, A.H. Paget and J.S. McLennan. The promise of federal bounties, together with concessions from the Liberal provincial administration of Premier
George Henry Murray George Henry Murray (June 7, 1861 – January 6, 1929) was a Nova Scotia politician who served as the eighth premier of Nova Scotia for 26 years and 188 days, the longest unbroken tenure for a head of government in Canadian history. Early life ...
, enabled DISCO to begin work in June 1899 on the largest integrated
steel mill A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finish ...
in the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. Located on the south side of Sydney Harbour, which Whitney said offered more advantages than anywhere else in the world, the mill was completed in 1901. Iron ore was mined by DISCO on Bell Island in
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
and shipped to Sydney. Competitors in Britain, France, Germany and the United States were initially concerned. However, continuing problems of management and cost control led to Whitney's early withdrawal from the project. Later in 1901, Whitney and his associates sold majority control of DOMCO to James Ross of
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, and their minority share of DISCO to Ross and several other Canadian interests. Whitney resigned as president of DISCO in 1902, and as a member of the DOMCO board in December 1903. Also in 1903, James H. Plummer of
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
gained control of DISCO, and later DOMCO in 1910, placing them under the Dominion Steel Corporation in 1910. Although Whitney remained on the DISCO board until 1909, his focus was redirected to New England.


Other companies

Back in Boston, Whitney established the New England Gas and Coke Company for the purpose of manufacturing and distributing illuminating gas and railroad-grade coke. In January 1896, Whitney announced the organization of the Massachusetts Pipe Line Gas Company. The new concern would purchase gas from New England Gas and Coke, which in turn purchased its raw material from DOMCO. A new contract between DOMCO and New England Gas and Coke was signed on September 30, 1897, and by mid-1899, a new gas plant was in operation in
Everett, Massachusetts Everett is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, directly north of Boston, bordering the neighborhood of Charlestown. The population was 49,075 at the time of the 2020 United States Census. Everett was the last city in the Un ...
. The arrangement led to the unfortunate public perception that the contract had been intended to enhance the value of the companies' stock. In June 1917, New England Fuel And Transportation, of which J.L. Richards was CEO, took over the assets and liabilities of The New England Gas and Coke Co. as well as Boston Tow Boat Co., Federal Coal and Coke Co., and the New England Coal and Coke Co.


Politics

In 1904, Whitney was elected president of the Boston Chamber of Commerce. He also became interested in politics, promoting tariff reform and reciprocal trade agreements between Canada and the United States. In 1905, Whitney ran for
Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts The lieutenant governor of Massachusetts is the first in the line to discharge the powers and duties of the office of governor following the incapacitation of the Governor of Massachusetts. The constitutional honorific title for the office is His ...
as a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
, losing by 1,996 votes to
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Eben S. Draper, which prompted a recount. Draper succeeded and became the 40th Lt. Governor of Massachusetts, serving under
Curtis Guild Jr. Curtis Guild Jr. (February 2, 1860 – April 6, 1915) was an American journalist, soldier, diplomat and politician from Massachusetts. He was the 43rd Governor of Massachusetts, serving from 1906 to 1909. Prior to his election as governor, Guil ...
, the previous Lt. Governor. In November 1905, Whitney had a public battle with President
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
over duty reciprocity with Canada. In 1907, two years later, Whitney was the Democratic candidate for
Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces. Massachusetts ...
in the general election of November 5, 1907. His candidacy caused Grenville MacFarland, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Democratic State Committee of Massachusetts to resign his post and his membership in the State Committee because of Whitney's Democratic nomination for Governor. MacFarland felt that Whitney represented corporate interests over "true Democratic principles" in his support of the merger of
New York, New Haven and Hartford The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to December 31, 1968. Founded by the merger of ...
with
Boston and Maine The Boston and Maine Railroad was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. Originally chartered in 1835, it became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983 (most of which was purchased by CSX in 2022). At the end of 1970, ...
railroads. Whitney eventually failed in his bid to unseat the Republican incumbent, Curtis Guild Jr. Eleven days later, he represented the family, along with
Harry Payne Whitney Harry Payne Whitney (April 29, 1872 – October 26, 1930) was an American businessman, thoroughbred horse breeder, and member of the prominent Whitney family. Early years Whitney was born in New York City on April 29, 1872, as the eldest son ...
, at the funeral in New York City of his brother-in-law, Charles T. Barney, who had shot himself following the failure of the
Knickerbocker Trust Company The Knickerbocker Trust was a bank based in New York City that was, at one time, among the largest banks in the United States. It was a central player in the Panic of 1907. History The bank was chartered in 1884 by Frederick G. Eldridge, a frie ...
in the
Panic of 1907 The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic or Knickerbocker Crisis, was a financial crisis that took place in the United States over a three-week period starting in mid-October, when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from ...
. In 1911, Whitney endorsed Senator
Henry Cabot Lodge Henry Cabot Lodge (May 12, 1850 November 9, 1924) was an American Republican politician, historian, and statesman from Massachusetts. He served in the United States Senate from 1893 to 1924 and is best known for his positions on foreign policy. ...
for reelection to the United States Senate in Massachusetts, due to Lodge's interest in tariff reforms, even though Lodge was a Republican. He supported Lodge over Governor elect
Eugene Foss Eugene Noble Foss (September 24, 1858 – September 13, 1939) was an American politician and manufacturer from Massachusetts. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives and served as a three-term governor of Massachusetts. E ...
's, a fellow Democrat, opposition to Lodge.


Personal life

On October 3, 1878, Whitney married Margaret Foster Green (1856–1932) of
Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...
, daughter of Admiral Joseph F. Green. Residing in Brookline, the couple were the parents of one son and four daughters. * Ruth Whitney * Eleanor Whitney, who married J. P. Gardner * Laura Whitney * James S. Whitney, who attended
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
with the class of 1908. * Josephine Whitney (b. 1891), who married Frank Boott Duveneck (1886–1985), the only child of painters
Frank Duveneck Frank Duveneck (né Decker; October 9, 1848 – January 3, 1919) was an American figure and portrait painter. Early life Duveneck was born in Covington, Kentucky, the son of German immigrant Bernhard Decker. Decker died in a cholera epidemic whe ...
and
Elizabeth Boott Elizabeth "Lizzie" Otis Lyman Boott (April 13, 1846 – March 22, 1888) was an American painter of still lifes, landscapes, and portraits. She was the daughter of the classical music composer Francis Boott and Elizabeth (''née'' Lyman) ...
. Whitney lived in Brookline, where he died on January 25, 1923, at the age of 84. Largely because of the easy success of his younger brother, Whitney was generally supposed to be wealthy, but he had suffered losses from poor investments over a period of years. When the estate of "the supposed multi-millionaire", as ''The New York Times'' put it, was probated, it was found to be worth only $1,221.


References

;Notes ;Sources *


External links


Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* ''Life on Two Levels'', Josephine Whitney Duveneck 1978 ; published by William Kaufman, Inc. One First St. Los Altos, CA 94022 {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitney, Henry Melville 1839 births 1923 deaths American businesspeople Whitney family People from Brookline, Massachusetts People from Conway, Massachusetts American people of English descent Massachusetts Democrats