The following is from a letter written by Henry Davis. The original was given to his daughter, which is now in the possession of his granddaughter, Naomi Elmirick. The letter has been reformatted in html. Not all the information is correct and I have not pursued all of the information to verify it. I have corrected the information concerning my family and that is in italics. Edited and copyrighted by Angela Whaley August 5, 1999 by courtesy of Naomi Elmirick.

The first Pratt of this line, of whom I have a record, are John and Mary Pratt of Monongalia County, Va (now W. Va.). I only have a record of two of their children, Hillery and Perry, both of whom were born in Monongalia County. At this time, John Weekley, Sr. lived over the boarder in Pennsylvania. I here mention John Weekley, as his family was later ot figure in this Pratt history, and also, in the history of both Tyler and Ritchie County.

Hilery Pratt, son of John and Mary Pratt, was born in Monongalia County, March 3, 1827. He was wed in Tyler County to Mary Weekley, daughter of John and ** (Gatrell) Weekley (see John Weekley, first paragraph.)

There were born to Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt the following children- all born in Tyler County.

John, Freeman, Margaret, Melvina, and Jackson (Jack).

The above children were married in Ritchie County, except Jackson, who, I believe, never wed. Jackson's stone monument can be seen in the Cantwell (or Ellefritts) Cemetery on Goose Creek. Within my memory, Hillery lived in Goose Creek, about a mile below the Nutter Farm. It is likely that Hillery and Mary's children were wed in this same community.

1- John Pratt, aged 25, son of Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt, was wed to Louisa A. Duff, aged 17, daughter of Isaiah and Eliza Jane Duff, May 9, 1874, by the Rev. George A. Woofter. To this union were born the following children: Mary, Lydia, Della, Pearl, Crowell, Lelia, Harry, Reuben, Edwin, and twins Maude and Minor.

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2-Freeman Pratt, son of Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt, was wed to Fanny Davis [sic] (Should be Sarah Davis, Fannie's sister.), daughter of Daniel Davis of lower Goose Creek. Freeman and Fanny Pratt had a large family, moved to North Dakota in 1906, and they never returned to their native soil to dwell.

3-Margaret Pratt, daughter of Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt, aged 25, was wed to Elam Wyatt, aged 32, son of Edmund and Nancy Wyatt, May 27, 1878, Samuel D. Thompson, officiating. They lived for many years on Goose Creek, about a mile below the mouth of Long Run. They were the parents of two sons: Charley and Ed.

4- Melvina (Mel) Pratt, aged 21, daughter of Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt, was wed to Levi Jasper Webb, son of Sylvester and Elizabeth (Nutter) Webb. Jasper's age is listed as 26. Rev. John Norris, officiating. The date of marriage uncertain.

5-Jackson Pratt (Jack), son of Hillery and Mary (Weekley) Pratt, was born, June 29, 1859- see page 1.

I might mention here that Jasper and Melvina Webb lived for many years of their earlier married life in this same Goose Creek Community.

I recall that Freeman and Fanny (Davis) Pratt lived in the early 90's just back of the OLD LOG SCHOOLHOUSE, which schoolhouse stood along the road to the left, as one travels across Long Run, near it's mouth, along this road to the OLD BAPTIST CHURCH. The old schoolhouse has long been gone, but,

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it lingered long in the memory of many in that community who spent many hours of their childhood within its walls. It

was in this log structure that my mother, as well as her brothers and sisters, received their early schooling. I was recently in the old Goose Creek Baptist Church. It seemed to be in a good state of repair. The inside seemed neat and clean. The antique chandelier, old-fashioned benches, and other interior fixtures seemed to reflect the character of those who cared. This church was rebuilt in 1898, and this writer has a grave recollection of having attended my grandmother's funeral there in 1900.

Hillery Pratt served in the Civil War from Tyler County [sic] (Pleasants County), serving in the Union Army, Co. F 6th [sic] (should be 14th) W. Va. Volunteer infantry. During his service in the army, his wife, Mary took care of their five children. His brother, Perry Pratt, served in the Union Army from Tyler County. Perry was also born in Monongalia County, March 3, 1831 [sic] (born the 24th). Perry was wed in Tyler County to Hannah Weekley, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Underwood) Weekley. Hannah was born May 18, 1835, died Jan. 12, 1881. There may have been a relationship between the wives of Hillery and Perry, but of that, I don't know. However, the two wives were not sisters.

Perry, like his brother Hillery, left their five children to be cared for by his wife Hannah while he served in the army. The names of the children were Margaret, Elizabeth, Jane, Sarah, and Belle. Elizabeth, Jane, and Sarah wed three of my father's brothers- Lewis, Anthony, and Jacob Davis. Perry was killed in the Battle of Gettysburg [sic] (Halltown, Va), in 1863, while carrying the American Flag.

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Hillery Pratt's first wife, Mary (Weekley) Pratt, died Jan. 5, 1872. About four years later, Hillery wed Deborah Ellen Hissem. From the Ritchie County records, I find that Hillery Pratt, aged 46, and Deborah Ellen Hissem, aged 46 were wed, March 19, 1876, by the Rev. George A. Woofter. This was Hillery's second marriage and Deborah Ellen's third marriage.

Deborah Ellen Slocum, daughter of Oswald and Rachel Slocum, was first wed to Tom Nutter of the noted Nutter Farm clan. Tom was gunned down by a deputy sheriff by the name of Lowther. It was said that the deputy sheriff was really gunning for "Devil Ben," Tom's youngest brother. The oldest child of Tom and Deborah, Columbia Nutter, wed James Smith, a brother of Narcissus (Aunt Sis Smith) Douglass. James and Narcissus were children of Mary Ann (Duff) Smith, Mary Ann being a sister of my grandfather Isaiah Duff.

Deborah Ellen was next wed to Joab Hissem, and to this union was born one son, Andrew (Bub). Joab soon after died and after that, Deborah Ellen wed Hillery Pratt (see page 3).

Hillery Pratt was buried in the Mount Zion Cemetery at the head of Marietta Run, his first wife buried at his side. The inscription on their monument reads as follows: Hillery Pratt, born March 7, 1827; died March 30, 1901, and Mary Pratt, born Dec. 28; died Jan. 15, 1872. (I don't recall the year of Mary's birth). There was also listed the company and regiment in which Hillery served during the Civil War. By the side of Hillery's grave and to the north was the grave of Deborah Ellen, born Jan. 13, 1829; died Jan. 25, 1905. Here is a separate marker. Next to Deborah Ellen's grave is that of Columbia 

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(Nutter) Smith, born July 12, 1849; died Feb. 1, 1906. Deborah and daughter Columbia, each have separate markers.

There is a discrepancy in the dates recorded of the year of Hillery's marriage record, and the records shown on his monument, and the census records of 1850. Both the latter dates indicate that the year of his birth to be 1827- this likely the correct year of his death. The marriage record of Hillery and Deborah would indicate that Hillery was born in 1830.

WEEKLEY

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John Weekley, Sr. was born in Pennsylvania in 1790, and was a veteran of the War of 1812. He was first wed to a Miss Gatrell who died in early life. John, Sr. and Mrs. (Gatrell) Weekley had the following children.

1-Stephen Weekley wed Miss Nancy Garrett and they were the parents of a large family. They, Stephen and Nancy, lived and died on Goose Creek.

2-Thomas Weekley went west.

3-Mary Weekley wed Hillery Pratt

4-Rachel wed John T. Lacy

5-Dorcas Weekley wed a Mr. Wright.

These five children came from Tyler County where thet became the citizens of Ritchie County. They all were likely married, with the possible exception of Thomas, before coming to Ritchie County.

After the death of the first wife of John Sr., he came with his second family to the Bonds Creek section of Ritchie County in 1847. His second marriage was in Tyler County to Miss Sarah Garrett. The children of this marriage were as follows:

1-Rhoda Weekley, born in 1827, wed George Corbin.

2-Jane wed Henry Williamson. She died young.

3-Richard Weekley, born in 1830, wed Miss Ada Corbin.

4-Justus, born in 1831, wed Miss Lucretia Carpenter.

5-Elizabeth Weekley, born in 1833, wed John Farmington.

6-Sarah Weekley, born in 1836, wed Jacob Pratt

7-John A. Weekley, born in 1837, wed Miss Orpha Slocum.

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Of the children of John Weekley Sr., I am only acquainted with the names of but two of his children's families: Mary (Weekley) Pratt, and of her half brother, John A. Weekley.

John A. Weekley, youngest child of John Sr. and Sarah (Garrett) Weekley, and who was born in 1837, was wed to Orpha Slocum, born in 1840, daughter of Oswald and Rachel Slocum. Within my memory, this John A. Weekley family lived on upper Marietta Run. A new four lane highway. new U.S. Route 50, is now being built over the spot where his house once stood. John A. and Rachel (Slocum) Weekley had the following children:

Sons: Luke, Badger, and Andy.

Daughters: Mrs. Jacqueline (Weekley) Freshwater; Mrs. Cora (Weekley) Richards; and Ida and Myrtle.

The Pratts of this line came into Tyler County from Monongalia County in the early 1800's.

The Weekley line came into Tyler County from Virginia, about 1810. These two Weekley families became related through marriages; and, also, the Pratts became related to both those Weekley branches through later marriages. I might also mention that three daughters- Elizabeth, Jane and Sarah Pratt, daughters of Perry and Hannah Weekley Pratt- were wed to Lewis, Anthony, and Jacob Davis who were brothers of my father Daniel Davis. Those three Pratt sisters were first cousins of John Pratt of Goose Creek, father of Edwin.

John Sr. and Mary Pratt were grandparents of Edwin Pratt.

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John Sr. and * (Gatrell) Weekley were great grandparents of Edwin Pratt.

Thomas P. and Cynthia Pratt came from Monongalia County to Ritchie County in 1856, and settled on Bonds Creek. This Pratt family may have been related to the family of John Weekley Sr.