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William Collins Whitney

William Collins Whitney, American financier and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Navy (died 1904)

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Born
July 5, 1841
Died
February 2, 1904
Zodiac sign
Cancer
Birth year
1841

About William Collins Whitney

William Collins Whitney was an American political leader and financier and a prominent member of the Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Cleveland from 1885 through 1889. A conservative reformer, he was considered a Bourbon Democrat. Sharp initially won the franchise by means of bribery, but in December 1884 Ryan formed an alliance with Whitney and Peter A.B. During President Cleveland's first administration (1885–1889), Whitney was United States Secretary of the Navy, and did much to develop the United States Navy. In 1883, through the Broadway Railroad Company, Whitney became involved in a struggle with Jacob Sharp and Thomas Fortune Ryan for the Broadway street-railway franchise.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

William Collins Whitney timeline

  1. In 1883, through the Broadway Railroad Company, Whitney became involved in a struggle with Jacob Sharp and Thomas Fortune Ryan for the Broadway street-railway franchise.
  2. Sharp initially won the franchise by means of bribery, but in December 1884 Ryan formed an alliance with Whitney and Peter A.B.
  3. During President Cleveland's first administration (1885–1889), Whitney was United States Secretary of the Navy, and did much to develop the United States Navy.

The world when William Collins Whitney was born

William Collins Whitney was born in 1841. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlinePresident Harrison dies 31 days into office
  • Technology milestoneFirst US patent for artificial teeth
  • World population~1.21B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderWilliam H. Harrison / John Tyler
  • U.S. population17.5M

1841 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in William Collins Whitney's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18412026
Population17.5M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.