John Teele Pratt

John Teele Pratt
John Teele Pratt
Born	Template:Birth date; Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	June 17, 1927 (aged 53)
Occupation(s)	Lawyer, financier, benefactor, patron of music
Known for	Corporate law, trustee of Pratt Institute, partner at Grayson M.P. Murphy & Co.

John Teele Pratt (December 25, 1873 – June 17, 1927) was a distinguished American lawyer specializing in corporate law, a benefactor, a patron of music, and a financier.

Early life

Pratt was born in Brooklyn, New York as one of six offspring of the industrial magnate and Standard Oil co-founder Charles Pratt and Mary Helen (née Richardson) Pratt. His brothers included Frederic Bayley Pratt, George Dupont Pratt, Herbert Lee Pratt, and Harold Irving Pratt. He also had two half-brothers from his father's earlier marriage, among them Charles Millard Pratt.

He completed his undergraduate studies at Amherst College in 1896 and subsequently obtained a law degree from Harvard Law School in 1900.

Career

Pratt built his legal career at the esteemed Wall Street law firm of Carter and Ledyard in New York City. He served on the boards of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad and various banking institutions, while also acting as a trustee for the Pratt Institute, an establishment founded by his father. Moreover, he was a partner at the brokerage firm Grayson M.P. Murphy & Co. on the Stock Exchange.

Personal life

In 1904, Pratt wed Ruth Sears Baker (1877–1965), a graduate of Wellesley College and daughter of Massachusetts merchant Edwin K. Baker. Ruth later became the first woman from New York elected to the United States Congress in 1929, two years following Pratt’s demise.

The couple had five children:

John Teele Pratt Jr. (1903–1969), who married Mary Christy Tiffany and subsequently Elizabeth Ogden Woodward, thereby connecting the family to notable financial and social networks including the founder of Squaw Valley Ski Resort.
Virginia Pratt (1905–1979), who was married to diplomat Robert H. Thayer.
Sally Sears Pratt (1908–1973), who married James Tracy Jackson III.
Phyllis Pratt (1912–1987), wife of Paul Nitze, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy and Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Edwin Howard Baker Pratt (1913–1975), who served as headmaster of Browne & Nichols school and married Aileen Kelly.

Death

At age 53, Pratt passed away unexpectedly from heart disease on June 17, 1927, in his office located on Broadway. Notably, his father, Charles Pratt, had succumbed to heart disease thirty-six years prior at the same location.

Legacy

In 1910, John and Ruth Pratt commissioned architect Charles A. Platt to design "The Manor," a brick neo-Georgian mansion situated on their expansive 55-acre estate in Glen Cove. By 1913, Country Life Magazine ranked it among America’s twelve finest country houses. The property later functioned as President Herbert Hoover’s summer White House and currently operates as the Glen Cove Mansion Hotel and Conference Center.

Pratt’s New York City home at 11 East 61st Street underwent renovation by architect Charles Pierrepont Henry Gilbert in 1907. In 1914, he purchased neighboring lots at numbers 7 and 9 East 61st Street and commissioned Platt to design a new residence after demolishing the existing structures.

Descendants

Through his eldest son John, Pratt was grandfather to Mary Christy Pratt (1923–1960), who married Bayard Cutting Auchincloss (1922–2001), nephew of U.S. Representative James C. Auchincloss. He is also great-grandfather to actress Suzanna Love (b. 1950).

From his daughter Phyllis came William A. Nitze of Washington, DC, chairman of Oceana Technologies and Clearpath Technologies.

Through son Edwin, he was grandfather to singer-songwriter Andy Pratt (b. 1947).

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