Home > Canada > Nova Scotia > Cape Breton County > North Sydney > Lakeside Cemetery > Valentine Whitehead Sr.

Valentine Whitehead Sr.

1 / 1

❮ ❯

Valentine Whitehead Sr.

Birth	:	2 Sep 1743
Death	:	28 Feb 1829 North Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, USA
Burial	:	Lakeside Cemetery, North Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate	:	46.2201881, -60.2826691
Description	:	In 1743 Valentine's parents, Christoffel (Stoffel) and Elizabeth Weisskopf, set out from southwestern Germany for America. They brought with them their daughter, Magdalena, and Elizabeth was expecting another child. During the arduous trip Elizabeth gave birth to their son, Valentine. The Weisskopfs arrived in Philadelphia on September 8, 1743 on the Loyal Judith, James Coway, ship's master. Valentine was just six days old. Unfortunately, within 2 years Christoffel died. He was less than 30 years of age at the time of his death. On December 26, 1745 the widow Elizabeth married Christian Rodabough, by whom she had... Read More	In 1743 Valentine's parents, Christoffel (Stoffel) and Elizabeth Weisskopf, set out from southwestern Germany for America. They brought with them their daughter, Magdalena, and Elizabeth was expecting another child. During the arduous trip Elizabeth gave birth to their son, Valentine. The Weisskopfs arrived in Philadelphia on September 8, 1743 on the Loyal Judith, James Coway, ship's master. Valentine was just six days old. Unfortunately, within 2 years Christoffel died. He was less than 30 years of age at the time of his death. On December 26, 1745 the widow Elizabeth married Christian Rodabough, by whom she had several more children. Christian adopted Valentine and his sister Magdalena as his own. The Rodaboughs lived and farmed in eastern Pennsylvania for a while, moved to Maryland for a time, then returned to eastern Pennsylvania. When Valentine was only 14 or 15-years old, he joined a group of soldiers under Gen. John Forbes in 1758 in the campaign to take Ft. Duquesne (Pittsburgh) back from the French. Since Valentine was so young, he may not have actually engaged in battle. He may have cut wood, run errands, helped the cook, etc. Col. George Washington came up from Virginia to join Gen. Forbes in this campaign. The 1758 campaign to drive the French from the Ohio Valley began on a sour note. Gen. Forbes was terribly ill, had to travel in a wagon bed and was unable to keep up with the main force. He turned the day-by-day command over to his second-in-command, Lt. Col. Henry Bouquet. As they neared the Fort in September, Bouquet sent 800 men under Maj. James Grant, primarily the 77th Regiment of Foot (Montgomrie's Highlanders), ahead to scout out the French emplacements and assess their strength. Grant, believing the fort to be lightly defended, instead drew the French out in an attempt to ambush them. The ambush went horribly wrong as Grant underestimated the number of French forces and their Indian allies. The Highlanders suffered high casualties and Grant was forced to make a desperate retreat. French commander de Lignery knew, however, that he would not be able to hold the fort against the main body of British troops, which numbered between 6,000 and 8,000 men. The fort was manned by only about 600 French and Indians and many of the natives began deserting him. On Nov. 26 he blew up the fort's magazines, set fire to the structure and retreated under cover of darkness. As the British marched toward the smoldering remains on the morning of the 27th young Valentine was greeted with an appalling sight. The Indians had decapitated the dead from among the Highlanders, impaled their heads on spikes and displayed their kilts below them. Around 1760, presumably at Valentine's urging, the entire Rodabough family moved to western Pennsylvania. By 1778 Valentine married Sophia Maria Ruff. He referred to her as Mary in his will. They had eleven children together, including Valentine, Jr. (my 4x great-grandfather, born in Nov. 1779), Mary, Barbara, Susanna, Elizabetha (called Elizabeth in his will), Magdalena, Catherine, Sara, Christianna (called Christina in his will), Christoper ("Stoffel," after his grandfather) and Peter. I believe that Amanda Whitehead Taylor, who is also buried in this cemetery, may be the daughter of Valentine's son Peter. If you can confirm this for me I would appreciate an email from you. Valentine is believed to have spent his life farming in North Huntingdon township, just north of the Pittsburgh. He may have used the name Whitehead during his lifetime, which is the English translation of Weisskopf. Nevertheless, he signed his will Valentine Wisecope, a phonetic spelling of Weisskopf. His children, however, abandoned the German name in favor of its anglicized version. If you have more information about Valentine or his offspring I would enjoy hearing from you. Much of the information above is recorded in "Four Generations of the Immigrant Christian Rodabaugh (1707?-1779) and His Family," by Kem Luther, 1992, 2003, self-published, http://www-acad.sheridanc.on.ca/~kem/Htmlgen/ctnrod.pdf.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is Valentine Whitehead Sr.'s memorial?
Valentine Whitehead Sr.'s memorial is located at: Lakeside Cemetery, North Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada.
When did Valentine Whitehead Sr. death?
Valentine Whitehead Sr. death on 28 Feb 1829 in North Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, USA
Where are the coordinates of the Valentine Whitehead Sr.'s memorial?
Latitude: 46.2201881
Longitude: -60.2826691

Family Members:

Parent

Spouse

Sophia Maria “Mary” Ruff Whitehead

(1744 - 1821)

Siblings

Children

Peter Whitehead

(1796 - 1867)

Flowers:

Left by Anonymous on 06 Jan 2013

I am the great granddaughter 5 times removed! I am checking in from Idaho where Adam Valentine's grandson located in 1904 and died in 1906. He is my great grandfather on my dad's maternal side. Rest in peace great grandpa. I am so glad zi found your resting place. Read less

Left by Anonymous on 12 Apr 2013

Related to Valentine through the Milliron line.

Left by Anonymous on 13 Jul 2016

Descended from Valentine through his eldest daughter Elizabeth. With my Respects!

Left by Anonymous on 09 Sep 2018

Left by Anonymous on 31 May 2019

Left by Anonymous on 24 Aug 2019

Left by Anonymous on 01 Dec 2019

Nearby Cemetories:

1. Lakeside Cemetery
North Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2201881, -60.2826691

2. Holy Cross Cemetery
North Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2185398, -60.2767897

3. Saint Joseph's Cemetery
Little Bras d'Or, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2431900, -60.2900930

4. Chapel Point Cemetery
Little Bras d'Or, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2418833, -60.2996667

5. Saint Joseph's Old Cemetery
North Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2140400, -60.2435410

6. Brookside Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2401020, -60.2453750

7. Tobin Road Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2389300, -60.2417900

8. Saint Joseph's Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2342430, -60.2356450

9. Barrington Family Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2300000, -60.2330000

10. McArthur Family Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2460500, -60.2436100

11. St. Stephen's Cemetery
Florence, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2565040, -60.2586680

12. Historical Presbyterian Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2321210, -60.2220970

13. Beech Street Catholic Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2379530, -60.2240862

14. Trinity Anglican Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2340030, -60.2190580

15. Saint Mary's Catholic Cemetery
Sydney Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2345810, -60.2186623

16. Church of Incarnation Cemetery
Edwardsville, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.1709000, -60.2397000

17. Hillcrest Baptist Cemetery
South Bar, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.1913100, -60.2002700

18. Church of Saint Anne - Alder Point
Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2890850, -60.2853710

19. Saint Alphonsus Parish Cemetery
Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2350600, -60.1753700

20. St. Alphonsus Cemetery
Victoria Mines, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.2331000, -60.1734000

21. Point Aconi Cemetery
Point Aconi, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.3046100, -60.2893200

22. Eastmount Cemetery
Whitney Pier, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.1717010, -60.1736510

23. Calvary Cemetery
Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.1626350, -60.1805380

24. New Calvary Cemetery
Sydney, Cape Breton County, Canada
Coordinate: 46.1620930, -60.1758460