Lowell Clark Pratt was born on 31. Dec. 1894 at parents house on Orange Ave. near, Pomona, Los Angeles County, California. He was the son of
Harry S. Pratt and
Alice M. Clark. Lowell Clark Pratt married
Dorothy Louise Neely, daughter of
Charles Gracchus Neely and
Lucia Hull Fish, on 18. May. 1918 at Claremont, Los Angeles County, California. Lowell Clark Pratt died on 6. Jun. 1979 at Wheaton, Montgomery County, Maryland, at age 84. Lowell Clark Pratt was born December 31, 1894,[1] in his parents' house on Orange Avenue near Pomona, Calif.[2] He was the son of Harry S. Pratt and Alice M. Clark. His birth was a terrible ordeal for his mother, and when he was born the young inexperienced doctor thought he was dead and put him in a pail. His mother's good friend Hattie Cutler saw that there was a spark of life in the baby and wrapped him in warm towels, saving his life. The family kept in touch with "Aunt" Hattie through the years.[3]
Lowell was the "apple of his mother's eye" all her life.[4] When he was three years old he won a contest for having the curliest hair; the prize was having his picture taken.
While still in high school he was an unpaid "leg man" for the Pomona Progress. After graduation in 1913 he was hired at $10 a week to cover local news and he continued working there while attending Pomona College. One of his first duties was to go to the railroad station to ask people where they were going.[5] This provided material for a "Personals" column. In the fall of 1915 he entered the Columbia University School of Journalism. His teachers included Walter Pritchard Eaton, Carlton J. H. Hayes, Charles Cooper, Walter B. Pitkin and Charles A. Beard. While at Columbia he often attended New York Philharmonic concerts and went to the Metropolitan Opera House -- once, in March 1916, he appeared as an extra in Aida.[6]
While at Columbia, he was involved with a group of students who opposed U.S. involvement in World War I. He went to Washington D.C. in February 1917 and attended a meeting and also was present at a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Afterwards they lobbied some of the senators.[7] War was declared April 6, 1917.
Lowell Pratt was drafted in September 1917.[8] He was inducted into the army October 4, in Pomona.[9] During World War I he served 18 months in the Army, including seven months of non-combat duty in France. He was a corporal and clerk of company B, 160th infantry. Later he was promoted to first sergeant. He first went to Camp Lewis in Washington state in October 1917 and within a few weeks was at Camp Kearney, in San Diego, where he remained until the summer of 1918.
On May 21, 1918, while still in the Army, he married Dorothy Louise Neely, whom he had met in high school. She was the daughter of Charles Gracchus Neely and Lucia Hull Fish. The marriage took place in Claremont. They had become engaged June 5, 1917, the same day he had registered for the draft.[10]
On August 8, 1918, Lowell and his company sailed for England on the S.S. Mentor, arriving in Liverpool on the 19th.[11] By August 25 they had landed at Le Havre, France, and in September they marched to Sancoins. The company was a replacement unit and some soldiers had been sent to battle.[12] When the war ended they were on their way to the front.[13] After the Armistice, they spent about a month in Alliancelles, a small town about 10 miles north of St. Vrain. It often rained and there was little for the men to do to occupy their time.[14]
In January 1919 the troops relocated to Bordeaux, where they remained until March 14 when they left France on the U.S.S. Matsonia. After a short time in New York City, they arrived in Los Angeles April 12, where they were greeted by a festive parade.[15]
Pratt was discharged April 16, 1919, at Camp Kearney.[16] He then continued his studies at Columbia, graduating in June 1920. He worked for two months on the Springfield (Mass.) Republican before returning to California to accept a position as city editor of the Pomona Progress.[17] In 1923 he joined the staff of the Pasadena Star-News where he started as a general assignment reporter and finally became the make-up editor.[18]
In 1926 he began looking for a weekly newspaper to buy. He had dreamed of owning a small-town paper and had admired William Allen White of the Emporia (Kans.) Gazette. He bought The Selma (Calif.) Enterprise for $13,000, of which about $4,000 was borrowed from his wife's brother-in-law Allan Carter.[19]
With a young man named Ernest Rapley, whom he brought from the Progress, he plunged into the life of a small town and had to learn facets of newspaper publishing which were new to him, such as job printing, advertising, circulation and promotion. He and "Rap" worked seven days a week, sometimes long into the night. They joined clubs, reported meetings that had previously been ignored, and promoted community projects. The Great Depression soon hit the town and the paper.
In February 1929 The Enterprise was consolidated with the other Selma paper, The Irrigator. Hard times in Selma had made it impossible for two papers to survive. "There was not a single job of printing in either shop," Pratt wrote. "We had hit bottom."[20] Ed Byfield, who had been the owner of the Irrigator, became business manager and Pratt continued as editor. The partners got along well -- each did what he was best suited for and they did not interfere with each other's duties. Because one of their creditors insisted on it the new paper was called the Selma Irrigator; when the debt was paid off ten years later the name reverted to The Selma Enterprise.[21]
In June 1929 the partners bought the Parlier Progress, and the Fowler Ensign was purchased in the early 30's. The commercial printing operation was christened the "Triangle Press." One year they printed over 30 high school annuals from all over the San Joaquin Valley.[22]
In August 1931 a fight broke out between a group of white youths and Filipino grape pickers. Although the whites admitted to starting the fight, only the Filipinos were charged and fined $10 -- a lot of money in those days. In an editorial called "Dollar Justice," Pratt criticized the judge's handling of the case. "If justice means anything at all, it means all shall be treated alike and that is exactly what was not done in the present case," he wrote.[23] The judge cited him for contempt of court. The story was reported in newspapers across the state, as well as in the Christian Science Monitor and Editor and Publisher. The charge of contempt was dropped a few days later. The Selma judge, police chief and traffic officer lost their jobs.[24]
Because of his stance that a judge is a public servant and should not be immune from public criticism, he was placed on the all-American journalism "team" of John H. Casey of the University of Oklahoma as editorial writer of the year in 1932.[25]
The newspaper also gained recognition in 1936 when it won a front page contest for weeklies, sponsored by the California Newspaper Publishers' Association.[26]
Pratt had served on the California Democratic Central Committee in 1932 and was a staunch supporter of Roosevelt. His work for the party and his prominence in town affairs led him to be appointed as Selma's postmaster in May 1934. As postmaster, Pratt received a salary of $2600 a year, his family's sole means of support. On Christmas mornings he volunteered to deliver packages. One of his official duties was supervising a move to a new Post Office building in 1937. During his years as postmaster he covered meetings and wrote editorials for the paper at night and on weekends. Eventually the strain of combining the Post Office job with his newspaper duties became too much, and he resigned in October 1939.[27]
During World War II, Pratt opposed the relocation of Japanese-Americans to internment camps. He also spoke out for their safe return after the war had ended. The Enterprise was one of the few newspapers in the west that stood up for the rights of Japanese-Americans at this time.
Pratt emphasized that Americans of Japanese ancestry were law-abiding U.S. citizens and had constitutional rights. His editorials were a voice of reason during a time of anti-Japanese hysteria. For example, a Fresno district attorney publicly stated that if a returning soldier shot and killed a Japanese-American it would be "hard to prove that he had killed a human being."[28]
In August 1943 Pratt testified before a committee appointed by the California State Senate. In his statement Pratt noted that the physical characteristics of Japanese-Americans made them easy targets for discrimination and that German-Americans and Italian-Americans were not treated similarly. Pratt felt anti-Japanese sentiment was racially motivated and emphasized that the vast majority of Japanese-Americans were loyal. Senator Donnelly, who presided over the committee, repeatedly referred to the "yellow race" and asked Pratt if he would want his daughter to marry a Japanese.[29]
When Selma's Japanese-Americans finally returned their reception was for the most part peaceful, although in May 1945 four shots were fired into a home, narrowly missing a five-year old girl.[30]
Because of Pratt's editorials on Japanese-Americans, Dr. Hubert Phillips, a teacher at Fresno State College, nominated him for a Pulitzer prize in journalism in 1943.
In May 1947 Mr. and Mrs. Pratt were guests of honor at a dinner hosted by the Japanese-American Citizens League in appreciation of Pratt's stand.[31] By late 1946 Pratt had begun thinking about selling The Enterprise. His partner, Ed Byfield, wanted to retire, forcing Pratt to make a decision on the matter. He considered buying Byfield's share in the paper, but that would have meant going into debt. He felt that it would be a relief not to have the responsibility of getting out a paper every week. "I somehow feel that I have fulfilled my 'mission' here and that it is time that someone else took over," Pratt wrote.[32] A buyer was found and announcement of the sale of The Enterprise surprised the town in March 1947.
In September 1947 Pratt became an assistant professor of journalism and director of public relations at San Jose State College. He was the first public relations director there.[33] He taught a newswriting course during his first semester and continued teaching until 1956.[34] He was also president of the San Jose Advertising Club. He retired in 1965 with the rank of full professor.[35]
In 1968 poor health led Lowell and Dorothy to move to Wheaton, Md., where they could be near their daughter. In 1975 he completed a 65-page book, A Weekly Miracle, which describes his experiences publishing the Selma Enterprise.
Dorothy Neely Pratt died May 22, 1974. Their marriage had been a happy one. Dorothy's father once had remarked that he'd never seen anyone "more thoroughly married."[36] Daughter Lucia has no memory of them ever raising their voices at each other. Dorothy had high ideals and supported Lowell's views on matters such as the fair treatment of Japanese-Americans during the war. Her advice and support undoubtedly helped him many times in his newspaper work.
After several years of heart problems Lowell Pratt died June 6, 1979, in the University Nursing Home in Wheaton, Md. He and Dorothy are buried in the Oak Park Cemetery in Claremont.
He had led a busy, active life. In Selma he had been president of the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club, and was also involved with the Boy Scouts and Community Welfare Fund.[37] He spent about 15 years as treasurer and fundraiser for the Red Cross.[38] During summers Pratt and family often took day trips to Yosemite or Sequoia National Park. He and Dorothy visited Europe in 1951[39] and Mexico in 1960. His hobbies included reading and collecting stamps.
Lowell Pratt was an honest, hard working man who had high ideals and put them into practice. He was outgoing, always friendly and interested in people and well-liked by others. This trait he shared with his father and grandfather, and it undoubtedly served him well in his careers as newspaperman and teacher.
At his memorial service a telegram from a former student, Peggy Major, was read. It said, in part: "Probably no single person has influenced my professional life more than a journalism professor named Lowell Pratt, whom I met in 1947... Lowell Pratt was the kind of teacher you never forget: intellectually quiet, patient, disciplined, thoroughly professional. Always there, right there, and nothing ever seemed to disturb his 'cool'... As a teacher of writing, Mr. Pratt tired to teach us to be factual, accurate, interesting, and concise. I hope that in my brevity I have not failed to give you some idea of what this wonderful teacher, counselor and friend has meant to me and how grateful I am to God for giving me the richness of knowing him both when I was a student and as an adult. I have been thanking the Lord for Lowell Pratt every day now for many years. I don't plan to stop now."[40].