MEMOIR

OF

WILLIAM HENRY WHITMORE, A.M.

BY WILLIAM S. APPLETON

WILLIAM HENRY WHITMORE was born at Dorchester, Massachusetts, 6 September, 1836, son of Charles Octavius and Lovice (Ayres) Whitmore. He has put in print the line of descent of each of his parents, from Francis Whitmore of Cambridge and John Ayres of Brookfield; but he was not able to connect either of these with his English ancestry. He was educated in the public schools of Boston, studying both at the Latin School and the English High School, but not completing the course at either. He entered the employment of the firm of C. O. Whitmore & Son, Commission Merchants for the sale of sugar and similar products, and, but for a short break, was connected with it for about twenty-five years. In 1861-62 he was abroad in the interest of the firm, most of the time in the island of Mauritius. While there he visited Madagascar, and on his way home made a short stay in Calcutta, and returned by way of England, more perhaps for the sake of seeing the village of Whitmore in Staffordshire than for any other reason. He never visited Europe again,

and in fact but seldom crossed the frontiers of Massachusetts. In 1865 the name of the firm was changed to C. O. Whitmore & Sons. At one time not long after 1870 he studied law, but was never admitted to the bar; and at about the same time he studied and practised painting, being undoubtedly led to this by his friendship and admiration for the artist Virgil Williams. He later undertook business again as Treasurer of the Milan Mining Company of Maine, a position which he held for several years.

In 1874 he was elected to the Common Council of Boston from Ward Four as a Republican. He soon quarrelled with

the party managers, and joined the Democratic party. In 1877 he was a Democratic candidate for the Common Council from Ward Ten, but was defeated. He was elected in 1878 from Ward Twelve as a Democrat, and was President of the Common Council for the year 1879. His farewell address, delivered on the last day of December, is an interesting study and statement of some points of parliamentary law. He was re-elected in 1879, 1880, 1881, 1882, 1885, 1886. He was a Trustee of the Public Library in 1882-83, 1885-88. In 1875 Whitmore and the writer were appointed by Mayor Cobb to the newly created offices of Record Commissioners of the City of Boston, and so continued by successive reappointments till 1892. The work of the Commissioners was twofold. They prepared and issued a series of volumes of historical interest, which numbered twenty-eight at the time of Whitmore's death. They also secured copies of the records of Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials of all the Churches of Boston, now kept in the department of the City Registrar, and of great value in consequence of the imperfect state of the Town Records as regards Births, Marriages, and Deaths. In 1892 he was appointed by Mayor Matthews City Registrar of Boston, to whose former duties were added those of the Record Commissioners, whose appointment as such came to an end. He still held the position of City Registrar at the time of his death.

Business and public office, however, may be considered mere episodes in Whitmore's life, which was essentially that of a man of letters in various forms, an antiquary, devoted especially to the studies of genealogy and heraldry. In both of these he was an enthusiastic student and a careful, critical author. His bibliography may almost be said to be the best memoir of his life, and it has been tried to make that as perfect as possible. He joined the New England Historic-Genealogical Society in 1854. He was a member of the Publishing Committee of the "New England Historical and Genealogical Register" 1857-61 and 1863-72, and was a frequent contributor to its pages, both of genealogies and of book-notices. That Society established a Committee on Heraldry in 1864, and Whitmore was its chairman from its beginning through the year 1872. It was at his suggestion that the Committee published for four years the "Heraldic Journal." He was much interested in the foundation of the "Historical Maga

zine" in 1857, but his name does not seem to appear in official connection with it.

In 1858 he was one of the founders of the Prince Society, which he served at different times both as its Recording and its Corresponding Secretary. Much of his best work was done for it as Editor of several volumes. The most important of these are the three volumes of Andros Tracts. His thoroughness is shown, first, in the finding them and bringing them together, and then in the careful study and annotation of them. The Memoirs of Andros and of Increase Mather, prepared for them, were also issued separately, and are pieces of admirable work for thought and judgment. He was elected a member of the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1863, and did good work for it, particularly as one of the Publishing Committee on Sewall's Diary. The three volumes show the extent of his study and knowledge of the life of those days. In 1867 he received the honorary degree of Master of Arts from Harvard University and Williams College. To the Memorial History of Boston published in 1880 he contributed three chapters, "Boston Families Prior to 1700," "The InterCharter Period," and "Boston Families of the Eighteenth Century."

In May, 1879, Whitmore sent out a circular, which resulted in the foundation in June of the Boston Antiquarian Club, whose character is sufficiently indicated by its name. The Club was dissolved in December, 1881, transferring all its property to the Bostonian Society, whose purpose was and is "the study of the history of the City of Boston, and the preservation of its antiquities." As a member of the City Government Whitmore was of use in obtaining for this Society the occupation and charge of the Old State House, the interior of which was restored as nearly as possible to its appearance in provincial times. His work in this connection is enough to make his service in the Common Council a creditable one, had he done nothing else there. By special vote of the City Government he edited in two volumes, in 1887 and 1889, the Colonial Laws of Massachusetts. His introduction, or "Bibliographical Sketch," was issued separately in 1890, and is probably his most careful, elaborate piece of work. It received high praise from those thoroughly competent to judge it. He was for many years a regular contributor to the