Frances Whitley Bryan wrote a biography of her family for Rusk Co, TXH istory:
"One day in 1869 a travel-weary young man with all he had in a bagrode u p to his sister’s house in Rusk County, Texas. He had riddenfrom White C ounty, Tennessee, so family legend goes, the day after heburied his fi rst wife and child in April of 1868.
The young man was my grandfather, John Henry Whitley, Company K, 16thT ennessee Infantry, C.S.A. His sister was Isabelle Henrietta(Whitley) R oberts. Aunt Belle and another brother, Sharp R. Whitley,had been in R usk County, Texas since before the Civil War. Lateranother sister, Luc inda Jane (Jennie) Whitley, came to Texas with herfather, John M. Whit ley, and stayed to marry William FranklinBradberry in 1874 in Rusk Cou nty, Texas. These are the antecedents ofthe Rusk County Whitleys.
My grandfather, John Henry Whitley, married Sarah Margaret Blair,daugh ter of Hugh Blair and Sarah Elizabeth (Grigsby) Blair in 1871.Daddy Wh itley was a farmer and clerk of the Methodist Church for manyyears. In h is clerk’s book is the record of his children and otherrelatives joini ng the church.
Daddy Whitley and Mammy raised eight children who were honest,industri ous citizens....
John Henry Whitley was descended from the Revolutionary soldier,Willia m Whitley of Virginia. The line is as follows: William Whitley,who mar ried Penelope Turner, died in 1810; Randolph Whitley, whomarried Tabit ha, died in 1785; Sharp R. Whitley, who was born circa1784-1785; John M . Whitley, who was born May 24, 1810, in Illinois,married Nancy Allen; J ohn Henry Whitley, born May 18, 1842 inTennessee, married Sarah Margar et Blair, January 18, 1871 in RuskCounty. She was born April 16, 1852 i n Rusk County. Both died in RuskCounty, John Henry on February 8, 1922 a nd Sarah Margaret, onNovember 20, 1935.
The children of the couple are: Charles B. (Buck) Whitley, bornOctober 3 0, 1871, married Mertie Haney, August 1894 and died May 4,1947; John A llen Whitley, born April 11, 1879, married Maude Fussell,March 16, 190 2, and died May 1, 1965; Sarah Maud Whitley, born April20, 1875, marri ed Thomas Jefferson Pruitt, December 27, 1896 and diedJuly 27, 1954; H ugh Blair Whitley, born March 28, 1878, marriedBessie Beauchamp Mays, J une 20, 1908 and died March 2, 1953; VinsonWebster Whitley, born April 9 , 1881, died January 10, 1964; JamesFloyd Whitley, born February 18 18 84; who died February 7, 1954; andAnna Belle Whitley, born August 6, 1 888, who died November 17, 1977."
"Daddy" Whitley’s obituary (Rusk County News, Vol. XLV, No. 1,February 1 5, 1922) says, " Mr. Whitley was a man of highest ideals,even tempered , reserved and unassuming, and all during his long lifeexemplified the se splendid qualities. He was recognized as a leaderof church and comm unity life during his active days, a leadership ofwhich he was never c onscious, gained solely by his unselfish devotionto the principles of r ight."
