William Roscoe Whipple was born to Joseph and Esther Whipple on 13 October 1878. I have not found his birth record, but many sources indicate that he was born in East Machias, Maine. The family moved to Rhode Island soon after, though, as the three of them appear on the 1880 census in Lincoln, Rhode Island. His gravestone says he was born in 1879, but if he's one year old, as stated on the census, then he must have been born in 1878. See lines 24–26 in the image below:
By 1900, his parents were still living in Rhode Island, but William had returned to Maine. He was boarding with the Ingraham family in Wade Plantation, Maine. Also living with the Ingrahams was 13-year-old Hattie Carson, whom William would marry in August of that year. See them on lines 69 and 71 in the image below:
Here's their marriage record. Note that it says Hattie was 15, but she had really just turned 14 a few weeks earlier. The names for William's parents on the back of the record are completely wrong, too.
See Hattie's article for my findings on their early children.
Here are a few mentions from a local Presque Isle newspaper regarding William.
By 1910, the Whipple family was living in Masardis, Maine at the Weeks Mill Settlement. See lines 89–93 in the image below:
The family moved frequently, and based on where their children were born, it looks like they moved to Central Maine for a few years after 1910. However, looking at William's World War I draft registration card, we can see that they were back north in Aroostook County by 1918, living in Oxbow, Maine. Interestingly, it says he was born in October 1880. However, this can't be true because he appeared on the 1880 census as a one-year-old.
The 1920 census shows the family living in Oxbow. William, Hattie and their six surviving children appear on lines 87–94 in the following image:
They were still living in Oxbow as of the 1930 census. The family of eight appears on lines 11–18 in the image below:
William appears to have left the family behind and moved south to Belfast, Maine sometime between 1930 and 1932. He petitioned for a divorce from Hattie in Waldo County Superior Court and was granted a divorce on 7 October 1932, as evidenced by the last line in the image below:
On 28 July 1934, William married Ida Mae (Rheaume) Mathurin. She was long divorced from Louis Armand Mathurin.
The 1940 census shows William, Ida and her uncle living on Searsmont Road in Belmont, Maine on lines 1–3:
William and Ida were still living in Belmont in 1950. See lines 24 and 25:
At some point, William moved back to Oxbow and that is where he passed away on 2 April 1961. His obituary:
Ida moved south to Fairfield, Maine and lived with a cousin until she passed in 1964. She was buried in Waterville, Maine. William and Hattie were reunited in Oxbow's Willard Cemetery when she died in 1978.
If you see any mistakes or know of information that isn't included here, please