He was born in Gawler, South Australia, a son of John and Emily Whinnen, née McIntosh (died 1923).
After attending the local primary school he secured a job with A. C. Follett & Co., drapers of Murray Street, Gawler.
[1] His family moved to Willaston, then to Broken Hill, where he worked for Don Tailors and took night classes in painting at the technical school.
[8] The Museum commissioned him to paint a diorama for a major display of Central Australian wildlife.
George Whinnen married Gladys Hill Pearce (1891 – 8 December 1953) on 19 August 1919; they had three daughters: They had a home at 5 Rowell Avenue, Glenunga