Whitney named in honor of Charles Whitney, land surveyor for the Pittsburgh and Lake Superior Iron Company, was the largest village in the township in 1880.  The mills and the lumbering business offered employment to many people who were housed in log cabins, small company-owned homes or in the central boarding house.  A post-office was established at Whitney in 1881. 

In a few years when the lumber resources were depleted the company officials moved on.  Even when the logging trade was booming, no depot was built at Whitney but a depot agent made his headquarters at the general store.

The National Pole Company tried a noble experiment in establishing one of the largest farms in Michigan with 2,240 acres but farming on a large scale was not very successful.  The National Pole Company farm has been decreased to about 600 acres and is now operated by Mr. Klasek. 

Many of the early woodsmen now gain a livelihood by farming and the harvesting of forest products.  The residents now receive their mail by U.S. mail carrier, automobiles have taken the place of the early C. & N.W. trains, and lumbering as a business has passed on.  Most of the residents are of Swedish nationality.