Biography of William C. Jillson

The first ancestor of the Jillson family is said to have come over from Normandy with William the Conqueror in 1066. The earliest member of the family to sail for New England was William Gilson, who came from Kent county, England, and settled in Scituate, Massachusetts, in 1631. The next on the list to emigrate are Joseph and James Gilson, the latter of whom settled in Rehoboth, Massachusetts, about the year 1666. He is the progenitor of the branch of the family represented by the subject of this biography. James and his wife Mary died about 1712. Their son, Nathaniel, … Read more

Ancestors of John Jay Whipple of Brockton, Massachusetts

John Jay Whipple

For nearly fifty years the name of Whipple has been one of Brockton citizenship, representing a family here of substance and exceptional prominence in the community. Reference is made to the late Ferdinand Whipple and his son, the present Hon. John Jay Whipple, who together and in turn have been among Brockton’s successful business men, the son having figured conspicuously in public affairs, filling most of the offices within the gift of his fellow citizens, among other honors having been four times elected to the mayoralty of the city of Brockton. The Whipple family is one long prominent in the country, the earlier generations having been conspicuous in Rhode Island’s Colonial period, it being a Rhode Island family.