By Linus Joseph Dewald Jr., Editor
Spring 2008 and Revised 6 Oct 2017
Update of 6 Oct 2017: This article is replaced by our Winter 2017 article of the same name
Note: This article replaces our earlier articles about (1) George W. Prentice of Louisville, KY and about (2) Nathan J. L. Prentice of KY and IN
Introduction: We are helping Sherry Temple whose information comes from an old family Bible belonging to a distant relative of hers, Martha Jane Prentice. She is seeking to identify the ancestry of her Nathan J. L. Prentice. Additional information has been supplied by Peggy Prentice and by Leland E. Prentice 1. Nathan J. L. Prentice was b. c. 1812, RI and d. 12 Feb 1875. In 1850 the census shows him living in Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY. His place of death is not yet known.
He is probably the Nathan Prentis who appears in the 1840 census in Wayne, Bartholomew Co., IN with a son and daughter, each under 5 years of age. The daughter may be his daughter, Martha Prentice, b. c. 1839, IN. No other Prentice, b. in RI, appears in the 1840 Bartholomew Co. census.
He later appears in the 1850 Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY, census (spelled Prentiss) and in the 1860 Louisville census (spelled Prentice) with his wife and family. Neither Nathan nor Rebecca appear in the 1870 or 1880 census.
He m. Rebecca Patrick on 25 Dec 1834 in Orange or Clark Counties, IN. She was b. 10 Dec 1814 and d. 10 Feb 1876. His place of death is not yet known. Children
2. William M. Prentice, b. c. 1839, IN and living in the 1850 census. He is probably the William M. Prentice shown in the 1880 Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY census as b. c. 1839 in IN with his wife, Sarah E. Davis who he m. 5 Jun 1862. Sarah was b. c. 1846 in KY.
William does not appear in the 1900 census, but his wife, Sarah, does appear in the 1900 Louisville census with the family of her daughter, Minnie. Children:
3. George W. Prentice was b. 1 Mar 1853 in KY (his gravesite says b. 1854 and d. 11 Oct 1927; bur. in U. S. Natl. Cem, Los Angeles CA per Lou Prentice, email, 13 Oct 2012). He appears at home in Louisville in the 1860 census and in the 1880 Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY census with his wife and family. In that 1880 census, the microfilm copy is difficult to read and the census index erroneously identifies the birth place of his father, Nathan, as MA, and that of his mother, Rebecca, as Ireland. He also appears in 1900 and 1910 Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY census with his wife and family.
Lou Prentice's email of 13 Oct 2012 relates that: "My grandfather (Louis Ruddell Prentice, Sr.), and my father, (Louis Ruddell Prentice, Jr.), told me that George W. Prentice rode for a brief period of time under the command of Gen. George A. Custer, prior to 1876, but I have not been able to verify that anywhere."
He m. Annie von Heidenreich (per Lou Prentice, ibid, but not verified), b. Mar 1854 in KY with both parents b. in Germany. George and Annie also appear in the later 1900 Oldham Co., KY census and the 1910 Nelson Co., KY census. In the 1900 census his name is spelled Prentisee. Annie's maiden surname may be Heidenre (see California Death Record discussion, below). Children of George and Annie(per 1880 and 1900 census):
4 Louis Ruddell Prentice, b. 8 Oct 1889, KY and d. 15 Jun 1961 in Ventura Co., CA at the age of 72 years. At home in Beard, Oldham Co., KY, in the 1900 census. He appears in the 1910 census in St. Louis, MO as a Lodger. John and his family lived in KY until at least 1918, moved to VA by 1920, and then to CA by 1924 when his daugher, Margaret was born.At the time of the the birth of his son, Ernest, in 1915, Louis was an iron worker in Louisville and a carpenter in his later years. Leland Prentice indicates that both Louis and Rosa moved to California. He later appears in the 1930 census in Ventura, Ventura Co., CA, with his wife and family. His mother's maiden surname is Heidenre (per Leland Prentice email of 28 Jan 2002 and California Death Records).
Louis m. Rosa Jean Turner. She is the Rosa Prentice shown in California Death Records as Rosa Jean Prentice, b. 15 Feb 1895 in KY and d. 14 Jul 1951 at the age of only 56 in Ventura Co., CA. Her father's surname is given as Turner and her mother's maiden surname is given as Payton. Children:
Margaret Webber Prentice,f 88, passed away on June 15, 2010, following a difficult and courageous battle with pancreatic cancer that lasted for several months.
Ms. Prentice was born November 25, 1921, in Verndale, MN to the union of Julia Horn, and Joseph Webber, Sr. Shortly after she graduated from Verndale High School, Ms. Prentice enlisted in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) in 1942. She was a payroll clerk initially, and eventually attained the rank of sergeant. She was very proud of her service during World War II, and spoke often and fondly of her experiences while serving. She was stationed at various times at Richmond, VA Air Base, the Pentagon, S. Carolina, and was discharged at Ft. Des Moines, Iowa in Nov, 1945.
Following the war, she went on a cross-country auto trip with her one brother, Clifford Webber. One of her stops was to Ventura in 1947, where she ended up staying, and meeting her future husband, is R. Prentice, Jr.y were later married on November 22, 1947.
Starting in the early 1950's, Ms. Prentice worked for a time as a bookkeeper at the former Ventura School for Girls (now a part of the CYA). She was a homemaker from the mid 1950's, until 1964. In that year, Ms. Prentice obtained her real estate salesperson's license. In 1966, she began her employment at the County of Ventura Public Social Service Agency, first as an eligibility interviewer, then later as a collections officer. She was employed at the County of Ventura PSSA until her retirement in 1981.
Following her retirement, Ms. Prentice enjoyed gardening, and took much pride in her flowers, fruits, and vegetables that she grew. She also enjoyed shopping, playing bingo and bridge. She was involved in community volunteer work, including several years as an income tax preparer. She was also a member of the Ventura Chapter of the American Contract Bridge League that plays at the First Christian Church.
For the last 30 years or so, off and on, Ms. Prentice suffered from a variety of physical ailments. Originally, she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1980, and suffered a second bout of breast cancer in 2004. At the time of her first cancer diagnosis, the doctors at Sansum-Santa Barbara Clinic estimated that Ms. Prentice would have only about three more years to live. In addition, she had undergone heart surgery in 2007, having undergone mitral valve replacement surgery, and also had two stents placed into one of her arteries. Ms. Prentice also had undergone cataract surgery in November, 2009.
Ms. Prentice came from a large family of 12 children, most of whom preceded her in death. Her husband, Louis R. Prentice, Jr., passed away on October 20, 1978. She is survived by her son, Lou R. Prentice, III, one sister, Martha Rach of Staples, MN, her brothers, Walter Webber, of Lake Elmo, MN, Ronald Webber of Seattle, Wash., and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family and friends of Ms. Prentice would like to extend an enormous amount of gratitude to all of the many health professionals who were involved with her care during her various illnesses. According to Ms. Prentice's wishes, funeral services will be private. Burial will be at Ivy Lawn Cemetery in Ventura.
Son of Louis and Helen:
5. Ernest E. Prentice, b. 13 Jun 1915, Louisville, KY and d. 1 Jul 1983, Tacoma, WA. He moved to California by 1939 and later to WA
He m. Helen Margaret Manza on 4 Mar 1939, Santa Maria, CA. Children:
6. George Prentice, b. 26 Jul 1919, VA, and d. 5 Feb 1992 in Ventura, Ventura Co., CA (per SSDI). They had 1 or more children, including:
7. Leland E. Prentice, b. 1939, Ventura, CA, lived in in Bakersfield, CA, and now lives in Oregon. He grew up in Tacoma, graduated from Gonzaga U with BA and from M.I.T with an MS. He is a retired Army Colonel. Children:
Since Nathan Prentice was b. c. 1812, RI, we checked the 1820 RI census and found the following, but we do not know if Nathan's family was still living there in 1820:
The following Prentices of Providence later appear in the 1830 census, but we do not know if Nathan's family was still living there in 1830.:
None of the 3 men appear in Ancestry.com as of 7 Mar 2008.
On 20 Jun 2002, we received an email from Diane Henley suggesting that Nathan may have had a sister, Sophia Prentice, who m. John Patrick in 1837 in Floyd Co., IN and settled in Louisville, KY, as did Nathan. Sophia and John had a daughter, Laura Patrick, who m. Isaiah King who was b. in Bethlehem, Clark IN. Laura and Isaiah settled in Clark Co. IN where they lived out their lives.
Investigation is continuing.
Correspondence: If you have any information about the folks mentioned in this article, please send your information to us at the Prentice Newsletter. Be sure to give the full title and date of this article in the Subject line of the email.
Caution: If you don't use the above email link, your email to us may be deleted as spam by our email filter.
Ventura County Star (CA) - Friday, June 18, 2010, Deceased Name: Helen Margaret Webber
Prentice. Born:1921 - Died:2010
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