Frank and Verna Pratt papers

Guide to the Frank and Verna Pratt papers
1967-2010

Collection number: HMC-1276.
Creator:
Pratt, Frank G.
Pratt, Verna E.
Title: Frank and Verna Pratt papers.
Dates: 1967-2010.
Volume of collection: 3.8 cubic feet.
Language of materials: Materials in the collection are in English.
Collection summary: Slides and papers relating to native plants of Alaska.

Biographical note:
Frank and Verna Pratt were born in Massachusetts in 1930 and got married after graduating from high school. They moved to Alaska in 1966, when Frank was stationed at Fort Richardson as an Army Intelligence Officer. After leaving the Army, Frank spent 34 years working as a pharmacist in Anchorage. Verna developed an interest in gardening and plants native to Alaska. She became a respected amateur botanist and master gardener. The Pratts published several guides to Alaskan wildflowers and berries, with many of the photographs taken by Frank. Verna also taught classes and led hiking tours at the University of Alaska Anchorage, Denali National Park, Alaska Botanical Garden, and Anchorage Public Schools. She co-founded the Alaska Native Plant Society and was a featured speaker at the International Rock Garden Plant Conference in Scotland in 2001. In 2009, the Pratts were awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Anchorage Chapter of the Alaska Master Gardeners. Frank Pratt died in Anchorage in 2012. Verna Pratt died in 2017.

Collection description:
The collection consists of slides taken by Frank and Verna Pratt, as well as papers relating to native plants of Alaska. Subjects of the slides include various plants native to Alaska; Alaskan animals; gardens in Alaska and in the United States and Canada; and travel photos from various locations in Alaska, including Denali National Park, Juneau, Skagway, the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska National Heritage Park, Hatcher Pass, Chugach Mountains, Seward Highway, Glenn Highway, Richardson Highway, Anchorage, Nome, St. Paul Island, Dutch Harbor, Southeast Alaska as well as some photographs taken in Canada and Scotland. The papers include administrative and other papers relating to the Alaska Native Plant Society; lists of plants by location; informational resources created or collected by Verna Pratt about growing and identifying plants native to Alaska; and information about events relating to Alaskan plants.

Arrangement: The collection is arranged into two series:

Series 1: Slides; 1967-2010
Series 2: Papers; 1982-2010

Digitized copies: This collection has not been digitized. For information about obtaining digital copies, please contact Archives and Special Collections.

Rights note: Archives and Special Collections owns copyright to materials created by Frank and Verna Pratt. Materials not created by Frank or Verna Pratt may be subject to copyright not held by Archives and Special Collections.

Preferred citation: Frank and Verna Pratt papers, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.

Works used in preparation of inventory:

“Obituaries: Frank Gardner Pratt Jr.” Anchorage Daily News, December 20, 2012.
“Wildflower wizard Verna Pratt dies in Anchorage.” Anchorage Daily News, January 9, 2017. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2017/01/09/wildflower-wizard-verna-pratt-dies-in-anchorage/

Separated materials: Alaska Native Plant Society newsletters have been removed and added to the Alaska Native Plant Society newsletters ephemera collection (EPH-0188).

Custodial history: Following Verna Pratt’s death, materials in the collection were transferred to Alaska native Plant Society President, Beth Baker.

Acquisition note: The collection was donated to Archives and Special Collections by Beth Baker and Frank G. Pratt III in January 2018. A deed of gift was signed by Frank G. Pratt III in December 2017.

Processing information: This collection was described by Gwen Higgins in 2018.

Container list:

Series 1: Slides; 1967-2010. 3.5 cubic feet.
This series consists of slides taken by Frank and Verna Pratt, depicting Alaskan plants and animals, gardens, and scenery from Alaska and elsewhere. Slides originally housed in numbered binders are arranged by binder number (binder 2 was not included in the collection.). The binders were, for the most part, arranged alphabetically by scientific names of plant families. Other slides are arranged alphabetically by subject.

Box/

Folder

Description Date
1/1 Binder 1: Adoxaceae, Apiacea, Apocynaceae 1984-2002
1/2 Binder 1: Araceae, Araliaceae, Asteraceae (through Arnica) 1984-2002
1/3 Binder 3: Asteraceae (Taraxacum), Balsaminaceae, Betulaceae 1983-2001
1/4 Binder 3: Boraginaceae, Brassicaceae (Arabis-Cakile) 1983-2005
1/5 Binder 4: Brassicaceae (Cardamine) 1978-2005
1/6 Binder 4: Brassicaceae (Cardamine), Campanulaceae 1976-2005
1/7 Binder 5: Caprifoliaceae, Caryophyllaceae 1976-2005
1/8 Binder 5: Caryophyllaceae 1976-2005
1/9 Binder 6: Chenopodiaceae, Cornaceae, Crassulaceae 1979-2004
1/10 Binder 6: Cupressaceae, Diapensiaceae, Droseraceae, Elaeganaceae, Empetraceae 1977-2005
1/11-12 Binder 7: Ericaceae 1977-2004
1/13 Binder 8: Equisetaceae, Fabaceae 1977-2004
1/14 Binder 8: Fabaceae 1971-2005
1/15 Binder 9: Fumariaceae, Gentianaceae 1976-2002
1/16 Binder 9: Geraniaceae, Grossularaceae, Haloragaceae 1976-2005
1/17 Binder 10: Hydrophyllaceae, Iridaceae, Juncaginaceae, Labitaceae, Lemnaceae, Lentibulariaceae 1977-2005
1/18 Binder 10: Liliaceae 1977-2004
2/1 Binder 11: Linaceae, Lycopodiaceae, Myriaceace, Nymphaeaceae 1979-2000
2/2 Binder 11: Onagraceae 1976-2001
2/3 Binder 12: Orchidaceae, Orobanchaceae 1976-2010
2/4 Binder 12: Papaveraceae 1977-2005
2/5 Binder 13: Pinaceae, Planaginaceae, Plumbaginaceae, Polemoniaceae 1976-2008
2/6 Binder 13: Polygonaceae, Pontaginaceae, Portulacaceae 1976-2007
2/7 Binder 14a: Primulaceae 1978-2005
2/8 Binder 14a: Pyrolaceae 1976-1999
2/9 Binder 14b: Ranunculaceae (Aconitum-Anemone) 1976-2005
2/10 Binder 15: Ranunculaceae (Aquilegia-Pulsatilla) 1976-2003
2/11-12 Binder 16: Rosaceae (through Potentilla) 1976-2003
2/13 Binder 17: Rosaceae (Rosa-Sorbus) 1976-2006
2/14 Binder 17: Rubiaceae, Salicaceae 1976-2000
2/15 Binder 18: Salicaceae 1976-2005
2/16 Binder 18: Santaliaceae, Saxifragaceae (through Mitella) 1976-2005
2/17 Binder 19: Saxifragaceae (Saxifraga to end) 1976-2005
2/18-19 Binder 20: Scrophulariaceae 1976-2005
3/1 Binder 21: Sparganiaceae, Typhaceae, Urticacea, Valerianaceae, Violaceae 1976-2008
3/2 Binder 22: mushrooms 1977-2000
3/3 Binder 22: ferns 1985-2005
3/4 Binder 23: grass, sedge, rush 1978-2007
3/5 Alaska Native Plant Society field trips 1984-1999
3/6 Animals 1988-2000
3/7 Animals: bears, caribou 1992-1998
3/8 Animals: sheep, moose, small animals, pets 1968-1999
3/9-13 Denali National Park 1975-2005
3/14-18 Flowers and plants 1976-2004
3/19-24 Gardens: Calgary, Seattle, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Eugene 1993-2006
4/1 Gardens: rock gardens 1996-2004
4/2 Moss, lichen, seaweed 1979-2007
4/3 Orchids 1980-2005
4/4 Revegetation, landscaping , weeds 1989-2002
4/5-12 Scenes and habitats: Juneau, Skagway, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska National Heritage Park, Hatcher Pass, Chugach Mountains, Seward Highway, Glenn Highway, Richardson Highway, Anchorage, Canada, Nome, St. Paul Island, Dutch Harbor, Scotland, Southeast Alaska 1967-2007
4/13 Weeds 1978-1995


Series 2: Papers; 1982-2010. 0.3 cubic feet.
This series consists of papers created and collected by Verna Pratt, relating to native plants of Alaska. The papers include Alaska Native Plant Society administrative papers and information about field trips; informational resources about growing and identifying Alaskan plants; and information about events relating to native plants of Alaska. The papers are arranged alphabetically.

Box/

Folder

Description Date
4/14 Alaska Botanical Gardens materials 1990, 2008
4/15 Alaska Day program undated
4/16 Alaska Master Gardener conference 2008
4/17 Alaska Native Plant Society administrative records 1983-1987
4/18 Alaska Native Plant Society field trips 1991-2006
4/19 Alaska native plant references undated
4/20 Best native plants for Southcentral Alaska undated
4/21 Emails 1998, 2002
4/22 50 easy plants for Alaska rock gardens undated
4/23 Flower identification by Verna Pratt undated
4/24 Forest flowers by Verna Pratt undated
4/25 Handwritten notes by Verna Pratt undated
4/26 Herbaceous plants undated
4/27 Latin beat: lists of Latin names for plants undated
4/28 Ledum Palustre drawing by Cara Wardlaw Bailey undated
4/29 Municipal garden informational sheet 1992
4/30 Orchid information sheets undated, 1986
4/31 Plant lists undated
4/32 Plant lists by location: Arctic Valley, Bird Ridge, Bison Gulch, Cordova, Glen Alps, McHugh Creek, Mosquito Lake, Nome, Potter 1984-2003
4/33 Pratt Museum garden guide 1982
4/34 Reference materials 1994-2007
4/35 Seed  information sheets undated, 2010
4/36 “Shade and Woodland Gardens for Anchorage” article by Sally Arant 1996
4/37 Specific plants information sheets: Pedicularis, Tetraphidae, Polytrichidae, Vaccinium, Macoun’s poppy undated
4/38 UAA classes information sheets 2000
4/39 Wildflower bloom times spreadsheet and guide 1992-2002

 

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