Tracing my Pruitt family tree is and remains to be a difficult endeavor, primarily because of the various ways the Pruitt name is spelled, such as:
Pruit, Pruitt, Pruet, Pruett, Prewit, Prewet, Prewette, Prewitt, Pruiett, Pruitte.
It must be said here that from the Colonial era until 1900, many people in American history never learned to read and write. This was common in many Pruitt families across many states just as it is true in many, many families across many states, which has produced a researcher's nightmare!
We know, too, that many people throughout history changed their names to change their identity. Reasons vary, of course, and three reasons could have been because they were running from the law, running from military service, or running from a woman.
Another reason is found in the fact that many people did not know how to spell their own names. Even within my own Pruitt tree, I have found the Pruitt name spelled in different ways---in the same family!
Another fact that contributes to this difficulty of searching my family tree is found in the popularity of male first names, such as Thomas, Henry, Joel, and Joseph. Add to this Thomas, Sr. & Thomas, Jr.; Henry, Sr. & Henry, Jr.; Joel, Sr. & Joel, Jr.; and Joseph, Sr. & Joseph, Jr. Now add these combinations together with many Pruitt families, across many states, and in all the various ways the Pruitt name is spelled. A Joel, Sr., for example, could have moved from Virginia to Wilkes County, North Carolina, while Joel, Jr. moved from Virginia to Wilkes County, Georgia. And these four popular first names are also common in the many families.
Four other names must also be considered as links in my family's history include the names of Presnell, Preston, Priest, and dePriest. For example, in the 1870 census of Wilkes County, seventeen people are indentified with the surname Priest.
Prior to 1900, Birth & Death Records were not required by the government of North Carolina, and most families did not keep a written record in the births of babies, nor in the deaths of babies or in the deaths adults.
Therefore, in searching my family tree for factual information, I have turned to census records, marriage records, Civil War records, to the work of other researchers, and to names and dates etched on tombstones in church cemeteries. Many people, however, could not afford tombstones, and not all of them were buried in church cemeteries. Many were buried in family plots on family properties, and, in the course of time and as people moved away from family lands, the graves of their dead became overgrown by trees and brush and lost to history.
Nevertheless, regardless of the difficulty this endeavor of counting heads can be, the search of my Pruitt family continues---fueled by this simple human desire of the need to know from whence we came. If you choose to view these pages in time to come, please feel free to offer any corrections or contributions of information in the comment box and I will get your message.
Pruit, Pruitt, Pruet, Pruett, Prewit, Prewet, Prewette, Prewitt, Pruiett, Pruitte.
It must be said here that from the Colonial era until 1900, many people in American history never learned to read and write. This was common in many Pruitt families across many states just as it is true in many, many families across many states, which has produced a researcher's nightmare!
We know, too, that many people throughout history changed their names to change their identity. Reasons vary, of course, and three reasons could have been because they were running from the law, running from military service, or running from a woman.
Another reason is found in the fact that many people did not know how to spell their own names. Even within my own Pruitt tree, I have found the Pruitt name spelled in different ways---in the same family!
Another fact that contributes to this difficulty of searching my family tree is found in the popularity of male first names, such as Thomas, Henry, Joel, and Joseph. Add to this Thomas, Sr. & Thomas, Jr.; Henry, Sr. & Henry, Jr.; Joel, Sr. & Joel, Jr.; and Joseph, Sr. & Joseph, Jr. Now add these combinations together with many Pruitt families, across many states, and in all the various ways the Pruitt name is spelled. A Joel, Sr., for example, could have moved from Virginia to Wilkes County, North Carolina, while Joel, Jr. moved from Virginia to Wilkes County, Georgia. And these four popular first names are also common in the many families.
Four other names must also be considered as links in my family's history include the names of Presnell, Preston, Priest, and dePriest. For example, in the 1870 census of Wilkes County, seventeen people are indentified with the surname Priest.
Prior to 1900, Birth & Death Records were not required by the government of North Carolina, and most families did not keep a written record in the births of babies, nor in the deaths of babies or in the deaths adults.
Therefore, in searching my family tree for factual information, I have turned to census records, marriage records, Civil War records, to the work of other researchers, and to names and dates etched on tombstones in church cemeteries. Many people, however, could not afford tombstones, and not all of them were buried in church cemeteries. Many were buried in family plots on family properties, and, in the course of time and as people moved away from family lands, the graves of their dead became overgrown by trees and brush and lost to history.
Nevertheless, regardless of the difficulty this endeavor of counting heads can be, the search of my Pruitt family continues---fueled by this simple human desire of the need to know from whence we came. If you choose to view these pages in time to come, please feel free to offer any corrections or contributions of information in the comment box and I will get your message.
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