Whitney was the son of Horace K. Whitney and Helen Mar Kimball. Whitney's father, Horace, had set type for the original publication of the Deseret News and worked as a printer with the newspaper for 21 years.
Background
Whitney was a politician, journalist, poet, historian and academic. In 1878, as a young man, Whitney began a career in writing with the business office of the Deseret News, later becoming a reporter and the city editor. During a mission in Europe for the LDS Church from 1881 to 1883, he acted as editor of the church publication Millennial Star. In 1896 and 1897, Whitney taught English and Theology at Brigham Young College in Logan, Utah. In 1899, Whitney accepted the position of Assistant Church Historian and served in that position until he was called as an apostle. Whitney was also involved in the politics of Salt Lake City and Utah. He served on the Salt Lake City Council in 1880, acted as City Treasurer from 1884 to 1890, and served as a State Senator in 1898, and again in 1901.
Writing
Whitney produced the lyrics to several LDS Church hymns, including "The Wintry Day, Descending to Its Close" and "Savior Redeemer of My Soul" ; these hymns appear as numbers 37 and 112, respectively, in the current edition of the LDS Church hymnal. Whitney's historical works, although detailed, well researched and presented, are written from a Mormon perspective; one 21st-century historian has commented that they are "locked in the ironclad orthodoxy" of Mormonism. In June 1888, Whitney delivered a speech entitled "Home Literature"; the speech is widely credited with proving both permission and impetus for Mormon literature and is the source of the sentence, "We will yet have Miltons and Shakespeares of our own." Publications include:
In 1905, two members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles resigned over a dispute regarding the 1890 Manifesto, which prohibited any further plural marriages within the church. John W. Taylor disagreed with the Manifesto entirely; Matthias F. Cowley felt that it should apply only to the United States. In February of the next year, Marriner W. Merrill died, which left three vacancies in the quorum. At a general conference of the church on April 8, 1906, Whitney was called as an apostle, along with George F. Richards and David O. McKay.
