William Henry Whitaker (1821–1888) was a pioneer from Georgia, who, under the provisions of the Armed Occupation Act of 1842, established the first permanent settlement in what is now Sarasota, Florida. He built a cedar log cabin on part of nearly 200 acres he would acquire along the bay between Hog Creek and today's Indian Beach Road. The Whitaker homestead was on Yellow Bluffs overlooking Sarasota Bay. It was high ground (likely due to Pre-Columbian Native American mounds), there was a small freshwater spring, and sufficient flat land and soil for farming. Initially, the family made their living by fishing and trading with Cubans, but soon they expanded to growing crops and planting citrus groves, rumored to be the "first in Florida". The Whitakers also introduced cattle to the area.
The family members are buried in the Whitaker Family Cemetery, maintained by the Sara de Soto Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
