Withey Family in Allegany County NY
Predominately in Towns of Alma & Bolivar
[Much of the information presented here is from writings and submitted by Dr. William Paquette of Virginia, formerly of Allentown, Town of Alma, NY. The material is in response to the photographs in our Photo Gallery ("Towns & Villages",>"Town of Alma",>"Unknown Photos".) section of this website.]
Photo #041 from the Photo section of the website taken from glass negatives of Allentown area is below with the comments related to the photo.
(From Dr. William Paquette, Professor of History) William Withey, Ina Withey Lockley, Emma Withey Sawyer, Jesse Withey, Clara Withey Viger Levere.
Ina, Emma, and Jesse were the children of Charles A. Withey and Elizabeth Root while William and Clara were the children of Charles' second marriage to Caroline Stebbins. See Root Family History, p. 177 and p. 178 for pictures and the text for bios of Charles A. Withey and children Charles Samuel (not pictured), Ina, Jesse, and Emma. I have an original of this photo given to me by Jesse Withey's daughter Ina Withey Burdick McEnroe. This photo was taken at Jesse Withey's home in Witheytown (Vosburg). (Webmaster Note: At request for information on the Root Family History the following is reply: "The book is out of print. It was published in 1990. There is a copy at BRAG to whom I donated a copy. I don't have any others. Within the next year I am going to update it (a non published but copyrighted probably a Kinkos run) because so much new information has surfaced. I have at least five large photo albums of Root photographs including reproductions of James Curtiss and his wife Huldah Root Curtiss who founded one of the first Bolivar banks. I even found a check he signed for his wife. The late Ina Withey Burdick McEnroe gave me two books on the Allentown school, one from 1909-1910 and one from 1933. I did a lot of collecting during the 1970s and 1980s when I put together the Root Family History and found silver napkin rings that belonged to my great-great grandmother, Almyra Reed Root and daughter Lola Root who died in 1886. I donated to BRAG a copy of the Reed family genealogy I did in 2011. It is just a Microsoft Word printed copy. The Reeds lived in Bolivar, Richburg, and Genesee, but all are gone now. I included a reproduction photograph of Jerome B. Reed and his wife. Jerome Reed died in 1875." ) B.R.A.G. is the Bolivar Richburg, Allentown & Genesee Historical Preservation Society, Bolivar NY.
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Ron, Here is the data for the photograph of the five Withey children, which got lost in the email to the webmaster. Thank you for putting in the information.
William H. Withey, son of Charles A. Withey and Caroline Stebbins. Father of Allentown postmaster Ward Withey.
Ina Withey Lockley, daughter of Charles A. Withey and Elizabeth Root, b. a. 1858 in Richburg, d. April 30, 1934 in Detroit; m. George J. Lockley (1858-1940) Ina was raised by her mother's sister, Mary Jane Root Barber, in Detroit and visited her siblings. She had one daughter. The Lockleys are buried in Detroit.
Emma Withey Sawyer daughter of Charles A. Withey and Elizabeth Root, b. November 23, 1854 in Richburg, d. October 4, 1923 in Wellsville; m. Rufus Sawyer (1851-1926). She was raised by Abel Root, Jr. and his wife, Polly Scott Root, her maternal grandparents in Bolivar. The Sawyers are buried in Wellsville, Woodlawn Cemetery. They did not have any children.
Jesse Withey, son of Charles A. Withey and Elizabeth Root, b. April 27, 1859 Richburg, d. July 21, 1942 in Belmont; m. Sarah Doutt (1868-1940). They are buried in Maple Lawn Cemetery, Bolivar. Jesse was raised by his maternal grandparents, Abel Root, Jr. and Polly Scott Root of Bolivar. They had five children. Jesse Withey children: Bessie Withey Maitland (1891-1979). She and her husband had 10 children. Resided in Florida. Ina Withey Burdick McEnroe (1894-1988). Married Earle Burdick and after he died Walter McEnroe, a local oilman. She is buried in Belmont with her first husband. She had 3 daughters.
Harry Withey (1899-1986), married, no children, resided in Derrick City, Pa.
The other two sons not pictured are: Howard Withey (1903-1975), married, two sons, died in Florida and Charles Withey (1907-1953), married, two sons and a daughter, died in Michigan.
Clara Withey Viger Levere, Daughter of Charles A. Withey and his second wife, Caroline Stebbins. Born March 1866, Wirt, NY Died August 12, 1943 Hamburg, New York, age 77 years, 4 months, 17 days. Buried Prospect Lawn Cemetery, Hamburg, NY; 1870 Federal Census: resided Wirt, NY with parents, half-brother Samuel Withey and brother William Withey. 1880 Federal Census: resided in Haymaker Village, Eldred, McKean County, PA with parents and brother William Withey. 1900 Federal Census: resided in Warren County, PA with first husband Benjamin Viger, born December 1862 and adopted son Burnett D. Viger, born April 1892. Benjamin Viger worked in the oil fields. 1910 Federal Census: resided in Alma, NY with husband and adopted son. Benjamin Viger was an oil well driller and the Vigers had been married 25 years. 1915 New York State Census: resided in Hamburg, NY with her adopted son, daughter-in-law, grandson and husband. Benjamin Viger was employed as a gas and oil well driller while the adopted son was a farmer. 1920 Federal Census: It is assumed that Benjamin Viger died between the 1915 New York State Census and the 1920 Federal Census because Clara remarried to a Wesley E. Levere, a carpenter, b. May 14, 1866 Hamburg, New York, died December 2, 1942, Hamburg, New York. Wesley Levere had been previously married. 1925 New York State Census: Clara and Wesley Levere resided in Hamburg, NY. 1930 Federal Census: Clara and Wesley Levere resided in Hamburg, NY. He remained employed as a carpenter. 1940 Federal Census: Clara and Wesley Levere resided in Hamburg, NY. He continued to work as a carpenter. Wesley Levere is buried in Prospect Lawn Cemetery in Hamburg, NY with his first wife, Sophie, b. 1863, d. 1918 and a son Albert Levere, b. 1874, d. 1901. Clara Withy Viger Levere is buried alone in a single plot in the same cemetery.
W. Paquette