He was born in Manchester to William and Sarah Whittaker,[1] and studied at Bradford Grammar School before going to St John's College, Cambridge.

He was appointed as examining chaplain to Charles Manners-Sutton, Archbishop of Canterbury, who granted him the living of Blackburn, Lancashire in 1822.

He also developed education in the town by creating Sunday Schools, and became involved in local politics.

Sharpe's biographer, John Hughes, suggests that the transepts were included at Whittaker's insistence.

[3] In addition to these concerns, Whittaker had wider interests, including philology, geology, and astronomy, and he helped in the formation of the Royal Astronomical Society.