By Linus Joseph Dewald Jr., Editor
Summer 2001 and Revised 26 Mar 2008
Update of 26 Mar 2008: William B. Prentiss is a descendant of Henry Prentice of Cambridge, MA .
1. William Prentiss was b. c. 1858, NY. He first appears living in the home of George S. Prentiss who appears in our Fall 1998 issue. They were then living in Stockberidge, Calumet Co., WI and William was called George's "nephew." Our copies of the 1880 WI census do not show any other Prentiss families living in Calumet County. One might infer that William's parents were still living in NY, or that perhaps they were then deceased.
William is likely the William B. Printice (sic), b. Oct 1857 in NY, who appears in the 1900 Gladstone, Delta Co., MI census with his wife, Rebecca, b. Feb 1860 in WI with their children:
- Vashti Printice, b. Oct 1891, WI.
- Earle Printice, b. Nov. 1894, MI.
William is also likely the William B. Prentiss, b. c. 1857-8 in NY, who appears in the 1920 Hamilton, Ravalli Co., MI census with his wife, Rebecca, b. c. 1861, WI with their children:
- Harry Earl Prentiss, b. c. 1894-5, MI.
- Florence J. Prentiss, b. c. 1901, MI.
A check of the 1860 census shows a Wm B Prentiss, b. c. 1858, NY, and in 1860 living in Brooklyn Ward 10 District 3, Kings, NY. He was the son of Jno Prentiss (b. c. 1830, NY) and his wife, Vashti E. (b. c. 1830, NY). The reason for identifying that family is that William named a daughter, Vashti, a most unusual name and almost certainly after his mother, Vashti..
Supporting evidence is found in Ancestry.com: One World Tree which also identifies William B. Prentiss as the son of John Prentiss (b. 1 Aug 1828) and Vashti Campbell (no birth information given). It also identifies their children as:
- John Prentiss.
- Jennie Prentiss. She m. Mr. Scudder and had a child, Picton Scudder.
- William B. Prentiss, above.
That website also identifies William B. Prentiss' mother as Lucy White. In an obvious error, the website Ancestor Chart says William's father is "George S. Bryant". However, clicking on Lucy White in the chart brings up a new screen which correctly identifies Lucy White's husband as Solomon Prentiss, b. 1780, Sherborn, Middlesex Co., MA, and d. 1854, Stockbridge, Calumet Co., WI.
Solomon and Lucy are #57.1 in our Henry Prentice eBook.
If you have any information about the folks mentioned in this article, please contact us at dewald@prenticenet.com and please include the title and date of this article.
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