rdricketts.com Blog

    Above: Katie Lavelette Jones (McKinney) and sister Florence ”Tiny Jones (Reynolds) on the porch of Aunt Beauty’s house on Claiborne Street in Danville, Virignia.  Beauty and their mother Annie Pruett Jones were sisters. 

Our “Aunt Beauty” was a sister to Grandmother Annie Brooks Pruett Jones (1880-1969).  The family lived on the William T. Pruett (her grandfather) farm in the Birch Creek District of Halifax County.  The farm and graveyard are on the Mercy Seat (Presbyterian) Church Road near the Pittsylvania line in the Sutherlin community.  In 1888, the family moved to Danville, Virginia.  Beauty was then not quite eleven years old and two years later she was married.  Her first child was born before she was 14 years old.    (more…)

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This is from a tin-type of Nathaniel Pruett (1837-1900) and his wife Laura Lavelette Driskill Pruett (1848-1933), probably from the 1890s.

They were married in 1864 while Nathaniel was a Confederate soldier. He was with Gen. Robert E. Lee at Appomattox at the surrender. We still have a part of an apple tree leaf that he brought back from near the surrender site.  Before she died in 1968, Ethel Pruett Hardister, daughter of Laura and Nathaniel gave me the leaf.  When Laura Lavelette died on 25 Jan. 1933, she was living with Ethel.  The 1930 census shows them living on John St. (now Richmond Ave.) in Danville, Virginia.  John M. “Coy” Hardister and wife Ethel are both 42 years old.  Living with them is 82-year old widow Laura L. Pruitt (sic), Coy’s mother-in-law.  Just up the street on the corner at 503 Middle Street was the house where the census taker found the family on 2 June 1900.  Laura Pruett, born 12 Feb. 1848 was the head of the household. 

It appears that Nathaniel had died, but his death date is listed as 25 July 1900 at age 62.  Also in the household is Annie Brook Pruett (Jones), born Sept. 1880 (age19), son David Pruett, born Sept. 1877 (age 22 – David died on 15 July 1901 before he reached his next birthday), son John Pruett, born Aug 1884 (age 15) and daughter Ethel Pruett (Hardister), born Sept.  1888.  Next door was Laura’s older daughter Mary Pruett, born Feb. 1874 (age 26), who in 1895 married James Petty, born June 1874 (age 25).  At that time they had only two children Gus Hughes Petty, born July 1897 (age 2) and James Otis Petty, born Dec 1899 (age 7/12).  They later had three more children.  

This is the revolver which belonged to Nathaniel Pruett.  Our cousins, descendants of the oldest son “Uncle Willie” in Florida,  have this gun which is said to have been carried through the Civil War by Nathaniel.  I think it is a Smith and Wesson.  Someone who knows guns might tell us more about it.  More pictures and information about Laura and Nathaniel are on our website rdricketts.com under family history. (more…)

Great grandmother Laura Lavelette Driskill Pruett (1848-1933) was a great granddaughter of Daniel Driskill.  Daniel was born in 1740 in Ireland and died in 1813.  He is buried in the community of Red Hill in Campbell County, Virginia.   Laura’s father William B. Driskill (1798-1854) is also said to be buried at Red Hill.  (see the map at the end). She was only six years old when her father died, but she probably lived on the Driskill land grant property at that time

Red Hill was the 2,920-acre estate of Patrick Henry, who is among the best known of Revolutionary patriots.  Patrick Henry, Virginia’s first governor in 1776, died and is buried at his Red Hill home place.  His home and grave is less than a mile north of the confluence of Falling River and the Staunton (Roanoke) River.  The mouth of Falling River is the dividing line between Campbell and Charlotte Counties and across the river is Halifax County.  (more…)