Born in Marlborough, Vermont; settled in Kirtland, Ohio, where he was partner in mercantile firm of Gilbert & Whitney; baptized in Kirtland by Parley P. Pratt, 1830; appointed bishop of Kirtland and the eastern branches of Church when Joseph Smith moved Church headquarters to Kirtland, 1831; appointed bishop of Middle Ward in Nauvoo, Illinois, 1839; appointed Presiding Bishop to the Church, 1847; immigrated to Salt Lake City in 1848, where he lived the remainder of his life. (See Jenson, BE, 1:222–27;Whitney, History of Utah, 4:233–36; Poulsen, “Life and Contributions of Newel Kimball Whitney”; GQC journal, June 17, 1851.)