- Settled: In 1869, by Mormon settlers, including the Robert Hull family from Franklin
- Original Name: After the railroad came through in 1878, its crossing and the community were known as Hull’s Crossing, after the Hull family, early settlers of the area
- Origin of Name: Named for Mormon apostle, Orson F. Whitney
- Historical Overview: First settled by the Hull family, who needed extra land for their crops; they built their homes there in 1869; the area remains mostly agriculturally based; In 1922 local residents formed The Franklin County Sugar Co. in Whitney; Del Monte operated a facility in Franklin and local farmers raised peas, sweet corn, cabbage and other crops to be processed there; an important ral stop, the community had a blacksmith shop, several stores, a church and school, gravel pit, birthplace of Ezra Taft Benson, who was called as a church apostle, organizing relief efforts to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint in Europe after World War II, became Secretary of Agriculture in the Eisenhower Administration, and became 13th President of his church, he is buried in Whitney cemetery
- Location: Located north of Franklin and south of Preston; 6.2 miles (9 minutes) south of Preston on Hwy 91 S
Source: “The Blazer Trail, Early History of Franklin County, Idaho; third edition, Daughters of Utah Pioneers, compiled by Alexis Champneys Beckstead