Person Page 461

John Bonar

Biography

Benjamin Pratt

Biography

Research Note		Lack of Information about Benjamin. Very little is known about Benjamin Pratt. We only know, or think we know, that his given name was Benjamin. This is taken from the genealogy written by my great-grandfather, Mason D. Pratt. The fragments that he had collected about Benjamin only fill a paragraph, see attached screenprint. I have learned more about them, and will discuss them in another entry. We do not know where or how he collected this information, or how he knew the name Benjamin. That a man named Benjamin Pratt was associated with the family in some way, is attested to by the 1850 census (see census entry). In that census, a 79-year-old Benjamin Pratt is in the Pratt household with Mary Herrick Pratt and her three sons. Her husband Richard Smalley Pratt was out West at the time. The biographer of Richard Henry Pratt, the oldest son, wrote that Richard Henry Pratt mentioned walking to his grandfather's place when he was a boy. Attachment: screenprint from MD Pratt Genealogy.1
Research Note		Benjamin Pratt of Caroline County, MD. MD Pratt in his Genealogy mentioned several facts that he thought applied to Richard Smalley Pratt's father: 1. He purchased canal lands in Marshall County near Lake Maxinkuckee. 2. He received a deed stating he was from Philadelphia County, PA. 3. He sold that property in 1864 to William Sturgeon, from Queen Anne's County, MD. 4. The deed was also signed by his wife, Elizabeth Ann. The Benjamin Pratt who carried out the actions above was Benjamin Pratt, Jr. (1809-1886), of Caroline County, MD and later of Gloucester County, Virginia. For more details see his webpage, which can be accessed through the surname index. It could be possible that the elder Benjamin living with Benjamin, Jr.'s household in 1860, was the purchaser of the property, and that his son inherited it and sold it when he died. But all four items could have been carried out by Benjamin, Jr., whose wife in 1864 was Elizabeth Ann Leager. I spent some time researching this family, and many of them are entered in my database, and can be reviewed from his webpage. As of 2024, I think it is very unlikely that this Maryland family is connected to Richard Smalley Pratt, and a major reason is that I have not been able to find any DNA matches to this family. And I have found another Pratt family to which we do have DNA matches.
Research Note		The Benjamin Pratts appearing in Indiana in the timeframe. See attached chart of the Benjamin Pratts that need to be differentiated, and among whom it is difficult to assign events.
Birth	1771	Benjamin Pratt was born in 1771 in Pennsylvania. Based on age 79 in 1850 census. In my search for Benjamin's father, and Benjamin's birthplace, I have focused on some clues in family names. Benjamin's son was named Richard Smalley Pratt. Smalley is obviously a family name. We have many DNA matches with Smalley descendants of Isaac Smalley and Cietje Pittenger of New Jersey, and also some matches to Smalley's and Pittengers to a further back MRCA.. Mary named her youngest son Seth Bacchus. In the 1860 and 1880 censuses, Seth's birthplace is listed as Pennsylvania. The Herrick family had strong ties to New York State, to Michigan, and to Ohio, but I am not aware of their connection to Pennsylvania. Bacchus is obviously a family name. I have looked into Bacchus, Smalley, and Pennsylvania in the hope of finding some connection. And one possible connection may lie in the southwest corner of Pennsylvania. There we find the confluence of the names Smalley, Pratt, and Bacchus in Greene and Fayette Counties in the 1700's and early 1800's. Based on other DNA matches, I am considering the possiblity that the name Bacchus was a version of Barcus, which itself seems to be a version of Barkhurst. We have DNA matches to a Barcus/Barkhurst/Backhurst family originating from Queen Anne's County, MD. A Mary "Polly" Barcus married Henry Pittenger. who was Cietje's brother, and Nicholas Pittenger, another brother, married Lidia Barcus. As of 2018, I found some support for the Fayette County theory, because we have some matching DNA segments with a Stevick cousin, descended from Mason D. Pratt's sister, and three people who descend from the John Pratt, Sr & Avarilla Bonar family, who lived in Fayette County in the early 1800's. Since that time I have found more DNA matches between family members and the John Pratt - Avarilla Bonar family. Attached are 1) a list of Smalley's in the 1790 and 1800 census although NJ does not have those censuses, and many areas of the western frontier also were not covered, and 2) a chart showing birth locations of Pratt family members from censuses and other documents. 3) Smalley DNA matches 4) Pratt-Bonar DNA matches
Census-not found	1800	Benjamin has not been found on the census of 1800. A search in ancestry.com for Benjamin Pratt in the 1800 census has 22 results, and they are all in New England. If Benjamin was born in 1776, he was 24 years old in 1800.
Census-not found	1810	Benjamin has not been found on the census of 1810. A search in ancestry.com for Benjamin Pratt in the 1810 census, there are 26 results, and they are all in New England except 3. If Benjamin was born in 1771, he was 39 years old in 1810. All in New England except: Madison, Virginia (17 miles from Culpepper) Augusta, Virginia (doesn't match age) North Hempstead, Queens
Residence	1817	As of 1817 Benjamin lived in Indiana -- if Richard Smalley Pratt was really born in Indiana as stated in the 1850 census.
Census-not found	1820	Benjamin has not been found on the census of 1820 A search for Benjamin Pratt in the 1820 census returns 30 people. All in New England and upstate NY except: Anson, NC Knox County, OH Licking County, OH Virginia James B. Pratt, Dock Ward, Phila, PA
Census-not found	1830	Benjamin has not been found on the census of 1830. A search on ancestry.com in 1830 results in 59 records. If Benjamin was born in 1771, he would be 59 in 1830. The majority are in New England. Next largest group is in New York State. One in New York City. Others Tiffin, Adams, Ohio Anson, NC Knox, TN - ruled out by 1840 Granville, Licking, Ohio (prob. Chatham, Licking in 1850, b. 1777, VT) Madison, Columbia, Pennsylvania Culpeper, Virginia (Also a Thomas Pratt family)-ruled out by 1840 Perry, St. Francois, Missouri Fayette, TN Washington, Licking, OH J.B. Piat/Prat (Philadelphia)
Census	24 September 1850	He appeared in the household of Mary Herrick in the census 24 September 1850 in Eel Township, Cass County, Indiana. Mary is listed as2
Residence	about 1851	As of about 1851 Benjamin lived in Logansport, Cass County, Indiana, about 5 miles outside of town. Elaine Goodale Eastman, Richard Henry Pratt's biographer, tells of Benjamin's grandson Henry earning enough to buy a pair of boots at a young age, maybe 11 years old or so, and he "wore them proudly slung about his neck on a five mile tramp to his grandfather's, feeling that they had cost too much to be put upon his feet." That would have been some time around 1851 or so, and Benjamin at that time was living five miles out of Logansport.3
Record not found	2009	Benjamin has not been found on the of 2009 for Cass County, Indiana. Records that were searched in 2009 with no Benjamin Pratt found, by an Indiana researcher, on-site at the Indiana State Library: Cass County General Index Deeds Book 1 May 1830-May 1853 Cass County General Index Deeds, Book 2, June 1853-Aug 1859 Cass County Index of Estates, Vol. 1, 1830-1953 Carroll County Mortgage Index, v. 1, 1844-1855 Carroll County Deed Index Book, Grantee 2, May 1846-Apr 1854 Carroll County 1845 Tax List Marshall County General Indexes to Deeds, Vol 1 (1836-1866), Vol. 2 (1853-1862) Marshall County Tax Duplicate List of 1843 Cass County Will Records, Vol. 1, 1831-1860, Vol. 2, Dec 1860-May 1877 Cass County General Index, Complete Probate Records Index, Probate Book 1, 1846-1877 Cass County Complete Record Probate 1, Comm. Pleas, Jan 1846-Oct 1850 Cass County Complete Record Probate 2, Comm. Pleas, Dec 1834 - April 1850 Cass County Index Complete Records, Civil 1, Jan 1831-Apr 1903 Cass County Complete Records Land Sales by Guardians, Vol. 1, 1867-1876 Cass County Complete Record Sale of Real Estate by Administrators, Vol 1, 1868-1869 Index to Estates, Cass County, Indiana, 1829-1900 Union County Grantor Index 1815 - 1928 (Found Rezin and John Pratt) Union County Grantee Index 1815-1894 - none Carroll County deed records that were found are entered in his timeline.

Citations

1. [S1088] Mason Delano Pratt, Genealogy of Richard Henry Pratt and his wife Anna Laura Mason Pratt (San Francisco, California: Privately Printed, availble online https://archive.org/details/genealogyofricha00prat/page/6/mode/1up, May, 1943), p.6. Hereinafter cited as Pratt Genealogy.
2. [S86] , 1850 Census Online, As viewed on ancestry.com.
3. [S1092] Elaine Goodale Eastman, Pratt, The Red Man's Moses (Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, October 1, 1935), p. 14. Hereinafter cited as Pratt, The Red Man's Moses.

Benj LeftOver Pratt

Biography

Research Note		This record is a holding "dummy person" where I store facts and events about a Benjamin Pratt that I cannot confidently attribute to one of the known Benjamin Pratts, who are: 1) Benjamin the father of Richard Smalley Pratt 2) Benjamin Pratt Sr. of Caroline County, MD and father of Benjamin Jr. 3) Benjamin the son of John Pratt and Avarilla Bonar These are the "leftover" facts, so I named this record Benj LeftOver. These facts mostly took place in Indiana, and all three of those men were known to be in Indiana for part of their lives. Some of these were: 1) Property Purchase and Sale 1835-37 in Carroll County, IN by a Benjamin "of Union County". 2) Award of property in Howard County, IN to Benjamin father of Abraham who was killed in the Mexican War. 3) 1840 and 1850 census records in Carroll and Fulton Counties. It is possible, and even likely, that some of these facts connect to one or more of these Benjamin's, and I wanted to keep them available and together for easy review and access.
Residence	1807	As of 1807 Benj lived in Dearborn County, Indiana, At this time Dearborn included a wider area than later in the century. A Benjamin Pratt or Piatt is included in this census. If this is Pratt, it could be this Benjamin, or it could be John and Avarilla Pratt's Benjamin. There are various transcriptions of this census online (as of 2023). https://usgenwebsites.org/INRipley/census/census_index.shtml http://ingenweb.org/infranklin/pages/census/1807main.html I have not found that the images of the original are online.
Research Note	1 October 1812	1 October 1812 Greensburg, Pennsylvania. a Benjamin Pratt is listed in the Greensburg, PA "Greensburgh & Indiana Gazette" in the list of letters remaining at the Post Office.  Greensburg is about 3/4 of the way from Carlisle to Pittsburgh, in Westmoreland County. Viewed on genealogybank.com.
Census	1820	He appeared in the census 1820 in Pike Township, Knox County, Ohio. Benj is listed as: Benjamin Pratt, with 2 males under 10 2 males 10-16 1 male 26-45 1 female 10-16 2 females 16-26 1 female 26 - 45 A Benjamin Pratt, do not know if this is the same Benjamin. There were a number of Pratts in Licking County, south of Knox, as early as 1814. I have not found any Pratt land records in Knox County. This is the only year there is a Pratt in Knox County. This Pratt is very near the area In Wayne/Ashland County where the Smalley's and Pittenger's settled, and it seems that Benjamin lived in Ohio for some period. However, it is also just north of Licking County where there was a big family of Pratts from Vermont. I have not traced this particular family identifiably in another census. This census is alphabetical. This could be in either Pike Township or Union Township. The townships are written along the sides of the pages, but they don't make sense. On his page (2/5 on ancestry) Pike is written by the L's - S's, but Union is written just above for the F's thru part of the L's. A search in ancestry.com for Benjamin Pratt in the 1820 census, there are 36 results, and they are all in New England except: Non-New England: Pike, Knox, Ohio (the male is in 26-44 range) Granville, Licking, Ohio Prince William, Virginia (the male is in 26-44 range) Tiffin, Adams, Ohio A few in New York state James B. Pratt, Dock Ward, Philadelphia, PA
Residence	1823	As of 1823 Benj lived in Ohio Based on 1850 census for Mary Pratt Smith, whose birthplace is listed as Ohio, if Mary Pratt Smith is part of this same family.
Census-not found	1830	Benj has not been found on the census of 1830. A search on ancestry.com in 1830 results in 59 records. If Benjamin was born in 1771, he would be 59 in 1830. The majority are in New England. Next largest group is in New York State. One in New York City. Others Tiffin, Adams, Ohio Anson, NC Knox, TN - ruled out by 1840 Granville, Licking, Ohio (prob. Chatham, Licking in 1850, b. 1777, VT) Madison, Columbia, Pennsylvania Culpeper, Virginia (Also a Thomas Pratt family)-ruled out by 1840 Perry, St. Francois, Missouri Fayette, TN Washington, Licking, OH J.B. Piat/Prat (Philadelphia)
Residence	1834	As of 1834 Benj lived in Union County, Indiana, based on an 1835 deed for property in Carroll County which listed him as "of Union County, Indiana". However, there was another Benjamin Pratt, the son of John Pratt Sr and Aravilla Bonar, who also lived in Indiana and came through Union and Fayette Counties, and could be confused with this Benjamin. I have considered that John and Avarilla's Benjamin Pratt could be the same person, but he was born in 1802, which would make him 15 when Richard Smalley Pratt was born. Not impossible, but rare.
Military Record	3 July 1835	On 3 July 1835 in Indiana Benj is noted in military records. A Benjamin Pratt is listed as a member of the Indiana State Militia, with rank of Ensign, in the 36th Regiment, in the Early Military Record Index. The Indiana Digital State Archives notes "The Early Military Records index is a compilation of records of the Indiana Territorial Militia and the Indiana State Militia. Also known as Indiana Rangers, Indiana Militia, and the Indiana Legion, the organization would finally become known as the Indiana National Guard. The index contains the names of early Hoosier soldiers who participated in the Battle of Tippecanoe, the War of 1812, and the Black Hawk War. Officers appointed to the Indiana State Militia during times of peace are also listed throughout the early part of the 19th century, and frequently mirror those found in the Mexican War and Civil War indexes. Two of the main sources of information were appointment books for commissioned officers, therefore, non-commissioned officers and privates are not well represented.
Property Record	31 October 1835	Benj was involved in a property transaction on 31 October 1835 in Burlington Township, Carroll County, Indiana. Benjamin purchased 80 acres of property in Twp 24N, Range 1E, Section 28 on 31 Oct 1835. This is certificate # 25866. The patent (attached) lists Benjamin Pratt as "of Union County, Indiana." This parcel was listed in the BLM system with a date of 30 Mar 1837. I am told by an archivist at the Indiana Archives that the dates listed on the BLM site are typically 2-3 years after the original date of purchase. The Indiana Archives lists the original purchase date. I have checked the Union County Grantor Index 1815 - 1927 and the Grantee Index 1815 - 1894. No Pratts at all in the Grantee Index, only John Pratt and Rezin Pratt in Grantor, selling their properties, most likely at the time they moved to Mercer County, IL.1,2,3
Property Record	26 December 1835	Benj was involved in a property transaction on 26 December 1835 in Burlington Township, Carroll County, Indiana. Benjamin purchased 40 acres of property in Twp 24N, Range 1E, Section 29 on 31 Oct 1835. This is certificate # 26921. The patent (attached) lists Benjamin Pratt as "of Union County, Indiana." Both these Burlington Twp properties are 20 miles south of Logansport, so this could not be the property that Richard Henry Pratt said he walked to as a young boy, 5 miles out of Logansport. We can't be sure that this is the same Benjamin, but it is likely, because a male of the correct age is in the Carroll County 1840 census. Possible Conflicting Information: It is possible that the Benjamin Pratt of Union County, Indiana was the son of John and Avarilla (Boner) Pratt from Fayette County, Pennsylvania who relocated to Mercer County, Illinois, because one of John's sons, Rezin, lived in Union County until 1836. Rezin and Benjamin Willis Pratt were brothers. B.W. Pratt was born in 1802. Nearby Purchasers: A Robert Pratt and a James Pratt purchased property in the same township in 1837 and 1838. Robert purchased two tracts in Sections 19 and 31, and James in Section 31. They both appear in the 1850 census for District 9, Carroll County, Indiana. District 9 seems to cover Democrat and Burlington townships. Robert is a 55 year old farmer born in Tenn, wife Catharine 55, b. in Penn, and two children born in Ohio, Lewis Hansbury, 14, and Catharine Hansbury, 11, perhaps children of Catharine by an earlier marriage. James is a 32 year old farmer born in Tenn, with a wife Lenda [Malinda Arther?] b. in Indiana, children Elizabeth, 9, Wm. H., 8, John W., 6, and George W, 3. Children all born in Indiana. In 1870 this James appears to be in Lawrence County, Missouri, with another wife, Mary Jane Imo, and 11 children.1,2,4
Newspaper Mention	24 November 1835	The 24 November 1835 edition of the Huron Reflector, Norwalk, Huron County, Ohio, reported on a bill in chancery regarding heirs of Jacob Burdue, deceased. "It appearing to the court that Benjamin Pratt, Margaret Pratt, Jane Pratt, Benjamin Pratt, Jr., William Ritchie, Margaret Ritchie, and heirs unknown, Jacob Mingus and Rebecca Mingus, Heirs of the said Jacob Burdue, deceased, are not residents of this State...." I am saving this because of the mention of Benjamin Pratt in Ohio.
Property Record	11 December 1837	Benj was involved in a property transaction on 11 December 1837 in Carroll County, Indiana. Benjaman (sic throughout) Pratt & John Jackson DEED: This Indenture, made this 11th day of Decr, AD eighteen hundred and thirty seven between Benjaman Pratt and Mary Pratt of the County of Carroll in the State of Indiana of the first part, and John Jackson of Tippecanoe County and State afforesaid of the second part ___?_____ that the said party of the first, in consideration of the sum of Five Hundred dollars to them in hand paid by the said party of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, do hereby grant, bargain, sell and convey unto the said party of the second part his Heirs and assigns forever, all that certain tract or parcel of land lying in the County of Carroll & State afforesaid to wit:  The W. 1/2 of the Northern 1/4 of Section No. 28 in Township No 24 North of Range No 1 East containing 80 Acres more or less. Also the N.E. Qr. of Section No. 29, in Township No. 24 North of Range No. 1 East containing 40 Acres more of less. To have and to hold the premises and appurtenances above described, to the said party of the second part his Heirs and Assigns forever. And the said Benjaman Pratt and Mary Pratt do for themselves, their heirs, Executors and Administrators, covenant with the said John Jackson, his Heirs, Executors, Administrators and Assigns, that they the said party of the first part are lawfully seized in fee of the aforesaid granted premises, that they are free from all encumbrances, that they are the true and lawful owner of said premises, and have good right to sell and convey the same in manner and form aforesaid. And further, that they the said party of the first part, for themselves, their Heirs, Executors and Administrators, will warrant and forever defend the aforesaid premises with the appurtenances, and every part thereof, unto the said party of the second part, his Heirs and Assigns forever, against all lawful claims of any person or persons whatsoever. In witness whereof, the said Benjaman Pratt and Mary Pratt have hereunto set their hands and seals on the day and year first above written. Benjamin Pratt, Mary Pratt signatures. Signed, sealed, and delivered in the presence of James Harman & William Twelly, State of Indiana and Carroll County, Before me, A. Clarke, a Justice of the Peace within and for said county, personally came Benjaman Pratt and Mary Pratt the grantors named in the above deed of conveyance, and acknowledge it to be their voluntary act and deed for the purposes therein mentioned.  And the said Mary Pratt, the wife of the said Benjaman Pratt having been by me examined separate and apart from her said husband, as required by law, touching the above deed, and the full contents and purport thereof having been made known to by me, declared that she signed, sealed and delivered the same of her own voluntary free will and accord, and as her own act and deed, without any coercion or compulsion of her said husband, and that she thereby relinquished all her right and claim to dower in said premises. In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of December AD 1837. Adam Clark. Recorded March 2, 1839, James H. Stewart, R.C.C. NOTE: Who was John Jackson of Tippecanoe County? An interesting coincidence is that a John Jackson, from Tenn. is listed in the 1860 census in Mercer County, Illinois, next to John Pratt, son of John and Avarilla Pratt. The oldest son in this John Jackson's household in 1860, Wiley L, was born in Indiana. So that means in 1840, he was in Indiana. Coincidence? I do not find a John Jackson in the 1840 census in Carroll County. There is a Jane Jackson, with a boy 10-15, a girl 15-20, and Jane is 30-40. Living next to Wilson Smith, William Carter, image 91 of 96. There is a John M. Jackson in Cass County. By 1863, these properties are owned by John Johnson and Thomas Cassidy.5
Census	1840	He appeared in the census 1840 in District 9, Carroll County, Indiana. Benj is listed as: Benjamin Pratt: one male 15-20, [b. 1820-25] one male 60-70, one female 15-20, [b. 1820-25] [Mary?] one female 20-30. [b. 1810-20] The male 60 - 70 would have a birth year of 1770-1780. Neighbors: Robert P. Bunning, O. D. Butler, Robert Weber, G. H. Duncan, William H. Burford, Samuel D. Gresham, Archibald Stitt. Image 89/96 Trying to determine what township was called District 9: 1850: Samuel D. Gresham still listed in District 9 as P.O. Clerk, but by 1860 he is in Delphi. District 9 in 1840 appears to be Burlington, by comparing some names in the Burlington land purchase list and looking them up in 1860. Is this our Benjamin, or a different one? The age is right, and the location appears to be where the property was purchased. However, he had sold the property in 1837. Benjamin son of John Sr and Avarilla Pratt would have been age 38. Is this female 20-30 the wife Mary mentioned in the 1837 property sale? Or a daughter or other relative? A wife aged 30 would not be old enough to have had Richard Smalley Pratt. We would expect his mother to be born about 1795 - 1800. And a wife 30 years old would not be old enough to have the two 15-20 teenagers on this census, unless she had twins at age 15. So perhaps Mary had died between 1837 and 1840. In 1840, there are 83 results to the search for a Benjamin Pratt on ancestry, but only 40 of them are named Benjamin. As before, the majority are in New England. Culpepper, VA (Also Thomas B.) Knox TN Lane, Logan, OH Perth Amboy, NJ Millwood, Guernsey, OH A Miss Mary Pratt was married on 19 Nov. 1848 to Joseph E. Smith, per an announcement in the Logansport Democratic Pharos newspaper. This appears to be a daughter of Benjamin based on the 1850 census. A Miss Elizabeth Pratt was married 5 Jul 1851 to Mr. Lewis H. Gerard. This was announced in the Logansport Democratic Pharos paper, but the Pratt-Gerard marriage seems to have taken place in Burlington, Iowa (the county seat of Des Moines County). Perhaps Elizabeth Pratt was from Logansport, which is why they reported it. The Findagrave page for Lewis W. Gerard shows him dying and buried in Oregon, and wife listed as Elizabeth A. Penland. The Indiana marriage index shows them married on the above date in White County, Indiana, and lists her surname as Penland, as does her daughter Hattie's marriage register entry. So the newspaper announcement seems to have been incorrect.6
Newspaper	29 November 1848	According to the on 29 November 1848 edition of the in Logansport, Cass County, Indiana, Democratic Pharos. "On the 19th of Nov., in Marshall county, by Esq. Carpenter, mr. JOSEPH E. SMITH and miss MARY PRATT. The above announcement will gratify the numerous acquaintances of friend Smith in this quarter. We wish him and his "better half" a happy honey-moon and a long one, at that." I think this Mary Pratt may have been one of the young women in the 1840 census of Benjamin Pratt, because a Benjamin Pratt, aged 77, is found in their household in the 1850 census.
Property Record	17 May 1849	Benj was involved in a property transaction on 17 May 1849 in Clay Township, Howard County, Indiana, Re: Abraham Pratt. per search of La Porte/Winamac Land Office Entries database on the Indiana Commission of Public Records website, http://www.in.gov/icpr. Twp 24N Range 03E Section 9 E1/2, NE1/4 80 A. Twp 24N Range 03E Section 10 SW1/4 NW1/4 40 A. This property was in Howard County, which had been Cass County until 1844, and was about 20 miles south-southeast of Logansport, near Kokomo. It is indexed under Cass County on the Indiana Digital Archives website with a receipt number of 019250. https://www.howardcountymemory.net/digital/collection/p17337coll11/id/209/rec/117 See attachments. This property was warranted to Abraham Pratt under the ScripWarrant Act of 1847, and he was deceased at the time of issue so it was issued to his father and heir, Benjamin. This ScripWarrant Act was to grant land to soldiers in the Mexican-American War, and Abraham served in Company G, Seventh Regiment, United States Infantry. Which Benjamin was the father of Abraham. See more information on Abraham on his own page. If Abraham was a brother of Richard Smalley Pratt, he may have been a reasonable age to enlist in 1846, and of a similar age to Richard Smalley Pratt. Supposedly, the Benjamin Pratt son of John and Aravilla Pratt never married (from his Findagrave entry https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36921036/benjamin-pratt). "The "land office business" in Indiana began in 1801, when public lands in the southeastern corner of the Indiana Territory were put up for sale at Cincinnati. The U.S. Congress subsequently opened land offices at Vincennes in 1804; at Jeffersonville in 1807; in 1819 at Terre Haute (later Crawfordsville) and Brookville (later Indianapolis); and at Ft. Wayne in 1822. An additional land office opened at LaPorte in 1833; six years later, the office was moved to Winamac. The LaPorte- Winamac District embraced all or part of the present counties of Benton, Carroll, Cass, Elkhart, Fulton, Howard, Jasper, Kosciusko, Lake, LaPorte, Marshall, Miami, Newton, Porter, Pulaski, St. Joseph, Starke, Wabash, and White."7,8
Property Record	17 May 1849	Benj was involved in a property transaction on 17 May 1849 in Eel Township, Cass County, Indiana, Re: Abraham Pratt. He sold the Howard County property that he had inherited from his son Abraham, as follows: Benjamin Pratt, in consideration of Two hundred dollars paid by Jesse Benbow, conveyed real eatae in Howard County, Indiana, the East half of the North East Quarter of Section number Nine and South West Quarter of North West Quarter of Section ten (10) in Township Twenty-four (24) , Range three East. Signed 17th day of May 1849, Benjamin Pratt Witnessed J.W.Dunn State of Indiana, Cass County S.S. "Personally appeared before me the subscriber, a Justice of the peace in and for said County, Benjamin Pratt the Grantor in the above County, and acknowledged the same to be his voluntary act and did witness my hand and seal this 17th day of May, 1849, Jas. W. Dunn, Justice of the Peace, State of Indiana, Cass County SS" "I, John B. Durst, Clerk of the Circuit Court of the County aforesaid do hereby certify that James W. Dunn before whom the within acknowledgment was taken was at the time the said acknowledgment was taken an Acting Justice of the Peace in and for the County aforesaid duly Commissioned ...Witness J.B. Durst, Clerk of Said Court and the Seal thereof this 13th day of October, 1849." John B.Durst, Clerk of the Court, lived in Eel Township (Logansport), Cass County. Howard County was formed southeast of Cass County, from Cass, Carroll and Miami Counties in 1844, as Richardville, and renamed Howard County in 1846. Possibly in 1849, the administration was still done from Logansport. I found that a log courthouse was completed in 1845. Land sales picked up speed through the late 1840's. In 1855, Kokomo was incorporated, and in 1865, a city government was established.
Census	1850	He appeared in the census 1850 in Aubbeenaubbee, Fulton County, Indiana. Benj is listed as: Joseph Smith (age 40, Farmer, real estate $1300, b. Massachusetts) Mary (age 25, b. Ohio) Gilbert (4 months, born in Indiana) Benjamin Pratt (age 77, Laborer, real estate $250, born in Maryland) Date on this census page 25 Sep 1850, enumerator I. N. Ingrim The Logansport census on which Benjamin the father of Richard Smalley Pratt appears, was taken 24 Sep, by Job B. Eldridge. It seems unlikely that they are the same person. Since this Benjamin was born in Maryland, possibly this census record should be on his page. If that is the case, perhaps this also fits with the 1840 census which includes a female in the age range of this Mary. Fulton County is the County just south of Marshall where the Lake Maxinkuckee property was. When it was sold, it was sold to a man in Fulton County. As far as the question could this be the same Benjamin appearing in the Herrick household in 1850, I have seen a few other cases of a person being entered twice on a census in two separate locations. Instructions to the enumerator were: Under heading 3, entitled ‘‘The name of every person whose usual place of abode on the 1st day of June, 1850, was in this family,’’ insert the name of every free person in each family, of every age, including the names of those temporarily absent, as well as those that were at home on that day. By place of abode is meant the house or usual lodging place of a person. Anyone who is temporarily absent on a journey, or for other purposes, without taking up his place of residence elsewhere, and with the intention of returning again, is to be considered a member of the family which the assistant marshal is enumerating...Those only who belong to such family, and consider it their home or usual place of abode, whether present or temporarily absent on a visit, journey, or a voyage, are to be enumerated. Image 4 of 10 for Aubbeenaubbee
Newspaper Advertisement	24 August 1853	The 24 August 1853 edition of the Terre Haute Wabash Express, Terre Haute, Vigo County, Indiana, contained the following advertisement: Notice by Court of Common Pleas looking for descendants of John Jackson, deceased, lists Benjamin Pratt among other names. Clipped because of the name and also because Benjamin Pratt sold property to a John Jackson in 1837. See attached.
Newspaper Mention	8 August 1863	The 8 August 1863 edition of the Logansport Journal, Logansport, Cass County, Indiana, reported List of Letters remaining in the Post Office for pickup as of 8 Aug 1863. Benjamin Pratt is listed there.
Record not found		Benj has not been found on the Records Not Found List for Cass County, Indiana. Records that were searched with no Benjamin Pratt found, by an Indiana researcher, on-site at the Indiana State Library: Cass County General Index Deeds Book 1 May 1830-May 1853 Cass County General Index Deeds, Book 2, June 1853-Aug 1859 Cass County Index of Estates, Vol. 1, 1830-1953 Carroll County Mortgage Index, v. 1, 1844-1855 Carroll County Deed Index Book, Grantee 2, May 1846-Apr 1854 Carroll County 1845 Tax List Marshall County General Indexes to Deeds, Vol 1 (1836-1866), Vol. 2 (1853-1862) Marshall County Tax Duplicate List of 1843 Cass County Will Records, Vol. 1, 1831-1860, Vol. 2, Dec 1860-May 1877 Cass County General Index, Complete Probate Records Index, Probate Book 1, 1846-1877 Cass County Complete Record Probate 1, Comm. Pleas, Jan 1846-Oct 1850 Cass County Complete Record Probate 2, Comm. Pleas, Dec 1834 - April 1850 Cass County Index Complete Records, Civil 1, Jan 1831-Apr 1903 Cass County Complete Records Land Sales by Guardians, Vol. 1, 1867-1876 Cass County Complete Record Sale of Real Estate by Administrators, Vol 1, 1868-1869 Index to Estates, Cass County, Indiana, 1829-1900 Union County Grantor Index 1815 - 1928 (Found Rezin and John Pratt) Union County Grantee Index 1815-1894 - none Carroll County deed records that were found are entered in his timeline.
Record not found	2009	Benj has not been found on the Ashland County, OH land records for Ashland County, Ohio. Ashland County Deed Index Book 1 1813-1914 BLM-GLO Ohio. There is one Benj Pratt, widow Sarah, of Virginia, died in War of 1812, granted in 1853, assigned to two other men.
Record not found		Benj has not been found on the Knox County, Ohio Land Records, general index to deed books, A-TT on Family Search.

Citations

1. [S1051] Carroll County, Indiana, Unindexed Records, Image Group Number (DGS) 007549046, Image 306 of 614.; Family Seach
2. [S1052] Carroll County, Indiana, p. 8 of 63; Digital copy, Family Search, Family Search (https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/201989?availability=Family%20History%20Library).
3. [S788] Indiana Archives and Records Administration, "Indiana Digital Archives", database, Indiana State Archives, Indiana Digital Archives (https://secure.in.gov/apps/iara/search/)
4. [S1049] "Indiana Memory Hosted Digital Collections", Indiana State Library, Indiana Memory (https://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/), "Plat Books of Indiana Counties Vol. 1 (A-C)", p. 111+ (Carroll County)
5. [S1093] Carroll County Deed Record Database: Viewed by Tami K. Pelling, Researcher, 18 Mar 2009, for H. Kilpatrick, Viewed on microfilm at Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, Indiana. Hereinafter cited as Carroll County Deed Record Database.
6. [S1090] , Census Online, Viewed on ancestry.com, Carroll County Indiana 89/96.
7. [S1091] Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office, Land Patent Database; BLM GLO Land Patent Database, www.glorecords.blm.gov/.
8. [S1064] Howard County, Indiana, Tract book for Township 24 North, Range 3,4 East., Digitized by Howard County Memory Project, p 5; Howard County Court House and online at https://www.howardcountymemory.net/digital/collection/p17337coll11/id/225/rec/117, Kokomo, Howard County, Indiana

Frederick S. Allen

Biography

Citations

1. [S287] Find a Grave Website, online www.findagrave.com, Amanda A. Herrick Allen ID = 43660307