Edwin Pratt with his wife, Bettye Pratt and his daughter Miriam Pratt
WHO WAS EDWIN T. PRATT?
Edwin T. Pratt was the director of the Seattle Urban League throughout the 1960's.
Mr. Pratt played a pivotal role in the unique and often untold story of the campaigns for equal housing, equal employment, racially neutral policing, and school desegregation in Seattle in the 50's and 60's.
Historians have called him the "dean of the civil rights establishment," and "the level head." His approach to leadership was the backbone of his life story, offering lessons with ongoing relevance in today's world.
"Pratt was applauded as he nudged and then pushed Seattle toward equality, only to be assassinated on his front doorstep one freezing night in 1969", writes Jean Soliz."
In 2018 his daughter, Miriam Pratt, donated a collection of photos, letters, and other and artifacts to the Black Heritage Society of Washington State (BHS) to protect and display the collection, and to allow students and historians to not only see the legacy of her father, but also to learn about some of the defining moments of Seattle's 1960's civil rights movement.
Miriam Pratt officially signs over her collection to the Black Heritage Society of Washington State
Stephanie Johnson-Toliver, President of BHS, and Jean Soliz, Pratt author and former Pratt babysitter, look on.
Unfortunately, the Pratt Legacy Collection photos and documents were deteriorating. For example, the original copy of Pratt's eulogy was cracking around the edges and the album that held it had fallen to pieces. The collection included over a hundred relevant photos, dozens of correspondence and journal entrees, and a variety of other artifacts (such as awards) from Pratt's life. This work was generously supported by King County 4Culture.
Our project team digitized the collection into an archive that shows how Pratt and his colleagues on the Central Area Civil Rights Committee (CACRC) strategized to fight for equal opportunities for Black Seattleites.
The project team formed after a Shoreline Historical Museum presentation on the life of Edwin Pratt in January, 2018. Project Director and BHS President Stephanie Johnson-Toliver provided oversight and Project Manager and Photographer Ken Winnick provided archival support services in cooperation with BHS archivists Ethelmarie Hubbard and Stephanie Spearman. Jean Soliz was the team historian and writer. City of Shoreline Public Art Coordinator Dave Francis facilitated a "call for art" based on the collection, and curated an art show centered on the Pratt legacy. The art opening and presentations were held at the Shoreline City Hall in 2009, on the 50th Anniversary of Pratt's death.
Details illustrating our image processing and image storage systems.
The end result of the project was a reconditioned, safely stored Pratt Legacy Collection acquired by BHS, along with various physical and online exhibits that depict Pratt's life and Seattle civil rights history during the tumultuous sixties. The legacy of Edwin T. Pratt and his civil rights colleagues will forever be preserved and accessible to the public; a learning experience for all ages.
"A LIFE REMEMBERED"
Below is a PowerPoint presentation on the life of Edwin T. Pratt, based on the archives developed for this project.
Click the images to enlarge. Press arrow keys or click arrows to move to next/previous slide. Press escape or click the X to exit.
