Daughter of Julius Billeter and Barbara Zweifel

Married William Parker Pratt, 13 Sep 1899, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah

Children - Elmer William Pratt, Julius Billeter Pratt, Ruth Pratt, Florence Billeter Pratt, Alice Barbara Pratt, LeGrand Billeter Pratt, Harold Billeter Pratt, Chase Billeter Pratt, Joseph Francis Pratt, William Parker Pratt, Robert Billeter Pratt, Catherine Pratt, Calvin Don Pratt

History - As Written by Herself

I was born in Zurich, Switzerland on Jan. 4, 1882. I was the tenth child in the family. My Mother accepted the gospel through missionaries when she was 16 years old. She was married to Father for 15 years before he joined the church. Father's folks lived in Italy for a few years and during that time he was born. All his ancestors came from Switzerland as far back as we can trace his line.

When I was two and a half years old we emigrated to America. Five of the children died while still quite young. There were only Father, Mother, Julius, Louise, Ferdinand, Barbara and myself that landed here in 1884. Father had joined the church before leaving Switzerland. Father being a good mechanic soon got a job with the Oregon Short Line Railroad. He worked there until he retired at 70. Also in 1884 we went to the Logan temple and were sealed to our parents for time and eternity. The Salt Lake Temple wasn't completed for several years later. I was brought up in a humble home where the days always began and ended with family prayers. Paying tithing and fast offering were very important in all our lives. My sister Barbara died when she was eight years old (broken appendix) which left a very lonely place in our home.

I attended the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple on April 6, 1893. I had a strong alto voice and belonged to Evan Stephens children's chorus. During this time I took the part of the wicked queen in the opera "Snowwhite and the Seven Dwarfs" given in the Salt Lake Theatre at First South and State about 1896. I represented Switzerland on the "Float of all Nations" in 1897 which was an important event 50 years since the first pioneers arrived in Salt Lake. In 1897 I joined the Tabernacle Choir and and sang with them at President Wilford Woodruf's funeral on Sept. 2, 1898. I was a member until my marriage. I heard the great Caruso sing and also Sousa and his famous band.

In 1898 I met William P. Pratt, a returned missionary who visited our ward. I'll never know why he should have paid any attention to little old me when I can name at least a dozen girls who would liked to have called him their beau. We only went steady about eight months and were married in the Salt Lake Temple Sept. 13, 1899. What a glorious happy day it was. I had the handsomest husband in the world. He was six years older than me and I looked up to him almost like he might be a king. We just automatically knew we belonged to each other.

The next 40 or 50 years were very strenuous, but also very rewarding. We lived in the 22nd Ward for three years. Then with our two boys, we moved to the newly organized 31st Ward on Harvard Ave and 10th East. We lived there for 12 years. By then we had 9 children and moved to Holladay where we had nearly three acres, plenty of room for cows, chickens and plenty of garden space. We only lived in Holladay three years, during which time two more boys were born. It was too expensive to send our children to town to high school, so in 1918 we moved to our present location, 3313 S. 11th East, close to schools. This is our 44th year at this same residence and have added four more children, making 15 children in all, 11 boys and 4 girls.

We have had all the disappointments, heartaches, illnesses, etc. that seem to go along with rearing a large family. In looking back it seems so easy to forget the many aggravating, irritating, unpleasant things that happened. But nothing ever happened to make us lose our love for each other. But our blessings and happiness far outweigh our numerous problems and through active church work and constant prayers can much of these difficulties be overcome.

Catherine Billeter Pratt Family History