The Whittakers are America’s most inbred family from Odd, West Virginia. They are currently six in number and they are Betty Whittaker, Lorene Whittaker, Timmy Whittaker, Ray Whittaker, Larry Whittaker, and Kenneth Whittaker.
The famous inbred family became widely popular in 2020 when Mark Laita, an American photographer, conducted a series of video interviews with them for a documentary on the Soft White Underbelly YouTube channel. The documentary which went viral sheds light on the issues with inbreeding and the challenges the family is going through. Here is what we know about the Whittakers.
How many Generations are the Whittakers Inbred?
The exact generations of the Whittaker Inbred family are unknown. Many accounts have emanated to trace their origin to the first-ever Whittaker family, however, none has been officially confirmed. Be that as it may, the Whitaker family tree is said to be traced back to four generations.
Some sources have stated that the first recorded cases of inbreeding within the Whittaker family occurred in the 1800s. At that time, there were only six people in the entire family. As time passed, more and more members of the Whittaker family began to marry each other. This led to an increase in genetic defects and health problems among the members of the family.
Other sources have gone as far as tracing their genealogy to one William and Abigail Whitaker, a couple who got married in 1819 and had three children: George, Rachel, and Joseph. Although it is unclear how they got into marrying each other, by the end of the 18th century, the number of the Whittaker family have exponentially increased through inbreeding.
Even though not much information is available to support the stories behind their ancestral lineage up to this present day, all of the Whittakers are related by one single bloodline. They are somehow first, second, or third cousins of each other and they share both of their ancestral parent’s DNA. The current Whittaker family has been living in the same small town for generations and is well-known within the community.
The Whittakers Are From Odds, West Virginia
The Whittakers are said to be residing in the rural town of Odd. Odd is an unincorporated rural hamlet in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. It is located along Tommy Creek. Only a post office is located there, with small residences spread along the nearby roads. According to multiple accounts, Odd boasts of an infamously tight-knitted population of around 779 people.
The community’s unusual name is said to have attracted the attention of writers, and most recently, tourists. Townspeople were encouraged to think of an “odd” name for their town, and so they decided to stick with the word “Odd”, which has remained the name of the town to date.
Although the Whittakers are said to be traced to four generations behind, what we are not sure of is if the town of Odds has been the ancestral abode of all the past four generations.
Some sources have it that the family has been living in this same location for at least five generations. The family has a long history in the area, making them a well-known and respected part of the community. They are also very highly protected by the people living in the community from tourists and people working with various media sources.
The Whittakers stay true to their roots and even today, their lifestyle remains almost unchanged. This is the nature of most societies where inbreeding is common and even legalized. They are mostly desolated with just a few populations and are not usually open to development or modern ways of life.
The Whittaker Family Tree
Unbelievable, but true, credible data regarding the Whittaker family tree will be difficult to come by. This could be attributed to factors like literacy level and the family’s economic status. That being said, multiple sources have tried to put together pieces of the Whittaker ancestral line to come up with a family tree for them.
As stated above, the Whittaker family tree as revealed by one source, may have begun with William and Abigail Whitaker and their children George, Rachel, and Joseph. It is not exactly stated if William and Abigail are somewhat related, however, it is revealed that George married his cousin Elizabeth in 1840 and that may have been how the inbreeding began. It is unclear who Elizabeth is related, however, they had seven children.
Contrary to the above source, another report has it that the inbreeding started with a set of identical twin brothers, Henry and John Whittaker, whose children got married and had over a dozen kids together. According to this report, Henry and his wife, Sally, had seven children, including John Emory Whittaker in 1913. And John and his spouse, Ada Riggs, who was his first cousin, had nine kids, including Gracie Irene Whittaker in 1920.
John and Gracie, who were double cousins and shared both sets of grandparents, married in 1935 and went on to have 15 children. Making it the actual line where the inbreeding currently is to date. This account seems more credible compared to the first, however, both have not been verified by any family member of the Whittaker. The family has now become a topic of interest, and as expected, more insights will follow up.
They Suffer From Many Genetic Issues and Other Abnormalities Related to Inbreeding
Inbred families suffer from a variety of physical, mental, and emotional issues that can have long-term effects on their health and well-being. Inbreeding is the practice of mating close relatives, such as siblings or parents and children, to produce offspring. It is an issue that has been present in some families for centuries, and it has a wide range of consequences for the people within these families.
It is reported that many of the Whittaker children had several severe physical and mental impairments, which are believed to have been a result of inbreeding. The eldest child of John and Gracie Whittaker, Aileen, passed away in June 1997 after suffering from a heart attack, while the oldest boy, Emery, who was born in 1938, died a month later after suffering from pneumonia. One of the most common physical issues associated with inbreeding is reduced fertility.
Inbreeding can lead to a decrease in fertility, as the offspring may have a higher risk of genetic abnormalities. Inbred individuals may experience a decreased immune system, as their bodies are less able to fight off diseases. This can lead to a decrease in overall health and an increased risk of illness and disease as was noticed with the Whittakers. As also observed with the Whittaker family, inbreeding may also lead to mental and emotional issues.
Inbred families may have low self-esteem, as the members of the family may feel ashamed of their appearance or the fact that they are related to one another. The Whittakers live mostly in isolation from the rest of the community. They may also be more likely to suffer from cognitive impairments, such as a decrease in IQ and difficulty in learning. This could also lead to issues with communication, as some of them seem unable to communicate normally.
Why Do The Whittakers Speak in Grunts?
The Whittakers speak in grunts due to several genetic disorders that came about as a result of years of inbreeding. According to various scientific studies, one of the many negative consequences of inbreeding is the inability to process speech and communicate properly. This, however, remains to be seen as some few members of the Whittaker family can still communicate and process speech properly.
It is reported that two members of the surviving Whitakkers family, Ray and Lorene, are both seemingly unable to speak and can only communicate through grunts and barks. However, they seem to understand the limited forms of communication they do use, even if it may sound unintelligible to an outsider.
Although they can understand what people may be saying to them, and even process the meaning, however, the decrease in cognitive abilities makes it difficult to form speech. So they grunt if they don’t like what is said to them or they start yelling to let you know they don’t like it. They also bark at strangers, this helps them maintain the distance between themselves and then they nod affirmatively if what is said is okay with them.
Some of the Whittaker family members communicate properly, however, the fact that they live in isolation further decreases their learning opportunities. Living in isolation reduces their level of exposure to the outside world and the various forms of communication in use. According to some sources, they seem to understand each other properly because the sign and forms of communication have been in use among themselves.
There Are Six Known Surviving Members of The Whittaker Inbred Family
The surviving members of the Whittaker family tree are six in number. They are Betty Whittaker who was born in 1952, Lorene Whittaker, born in 1946, and his son Timmy Whittaker, born in 1979. Ray Whittaker was born in 1953, Larry Whittaker was born in 1956, and Kenneth Whittaker was born in 1957, as earlier mentioned above.
It was initially perceived that their parents, John and Gracie were siblings, however, it turned out that they were double cousins and shared both sets of grandparents, married in 1935, and went on to have 15 children.
It is reported that they were about 15 children given birth to by John and Gracie Whittaker. However, many of their children had several severe physical and mental impairments, which are believed to have been a result of inbreeding. These impairments and birth disorders would lead to the death of a good number of them, leaving just a few survivors.
Betty Whittaker is reported to be the oldest surviving child of the Whittaker offspring. She has taken on the role of the matriarch of the family and promised her mother she would not marry so she could look after her 14 siblings. Of all the surviving Whittaker Clan, Timmy is the only one who has graduated from high school.
Most of the Whittaker Family Members Have Passed Away
According to experts, some of the devastating conditions that the family members who are still alive are battling may have been brought on by inter-family relations. The family has had numerous heart attacks, and two of the children did not survive infancy. It is unknown, nevertheless, whether the family’s documented deaths were brought on by problems with inbreeding.
Here is a list of the deceased members of the Whittaker family;
- Aileen Violet Whittaker was the first of 15 children that John and Gracie Whittaker had, she was born in 1937 and passed away in June 1997 after suffering from a heart attack.
- Emery Lee Whittaker was their second child, born in 1938 but died a month later after suffering from pneumonia.
- Barbra Whittaker was born in September 1940 and died following a short illness in October 2008. Reports have it that she did not marry before she died at St Mary’s Hospital in Huntington, and she was described as a homemaker who loved picnics with her family.
- Not much is known about the next two sisters, Nannie Lou Whittaker, born in 1942, and Connie Jean Whittaker, born in 1943.
- Freddie Lee Whittaker was born in 1944 and passed away in May 2013 due to an illness.
- 1948 saw the birth of Mary Madeline Whittaker, who passed away the following year. It is unknown if her passing had anything to do with inbreeding.
- John Wade Whittaker was born in 1950 and passed away in 2022.
- Judy Kay Whittaker, born in 1959, and Michael Stevie Whittaker, born in 1960, are the last two siblings. Although it is unknown how they both died, Michael died in July 2001 at the age of 40, and Judy died in August 2021.
The Whittaker Family Were Featured In A Documentary That Went Viral
The Whittaker family first gained public notoriety in 2020 when they appeared on the Soft White Underbelly YouTube channel as part of a series of video interviews conducted by Mark Laita. Soft White Underbelly is an American YouTube channel created in 2016. It features interviews with “people who are frequently invisible in society—the unhoused, the sex worker, the chronic drug user, the runaway, the gang member, the poor, and the sick”.
Mark Laita who is an American photographer and filmmaker, first came across the Whittaker when he snapped them for his photographic book Created Equal in 2004. Mark Laita’s Created Equal documents the people who make up America’s diverse culture, shedding light on notions of identity, class, and lifestyle. The photographer’s first visit to the Whitakers found them living in a cramped shack with several dogs.
That first visit didn’t go down well with the Whittaker family neighbors who didn’t give Mark a warm welcome and was threatened with a shotgun. However, Laita was able to convince them of his good intentions toward the well-being of the family and the community which seem to have been in neglect. Laita, it would seem, had better plans for the family, and 10 years after his first visits, he went back again, but with a bigger media platform this time.
The 2020-released video Laita made is titled Inbred Family – The Whittakers and has amassed over 29 million views and 383 thousand likes on YouTube. It highlighted how the Whittakers were struggling to make ends meet in their small house. Laita’s video drew a lot of concern from viewers toward the Whittakers. And they wanted to assist, so Laita created a GoFundMe for people who want to make donations to help the family raise $75,000 to make necessary improvements to their home.