The “Aunts & Uncles” series of biographical sketches are Artificial Intelligence (AI) compiled narratives of selected individuals from my Genealogical database. The selected AI will used the RootsMagic Individual Summary from my Genealogical Software, Roots Magic. All genealogical data is my research material acquired over the past 46 years of research. Today's Biography of Michawl Davis Previtte (1881-1960) was compiled with the assistance of Claude Sonnett 4 and is entitled:
The Life of
Michael Davis Previtte
November 16, 1881 – April 23, 1960
Chesterfield County, South Carolina · Anson County, North Carolina
A Son of the Carolinas
Mike Davis Previtte — as family and neighbors knew him — was a man deeply rooted in the red clay and pine country that stretches across the border of South Carolina and North Carolina. He was born on November 16, 1881, in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, to John Washington Previtte and Elizabeth "Bette" Davis Previtte. He lived through an extraordinary stretch of American history, from the closing years of Reconstruction through two World Wars and into the early Space Age, spending the bulk of his life quietly farming the land near Morven in Anson County, North Carolina. He died there on April 23, 1960, at the age of 78 — a retired farmer survived by his wife, three children, and eight grandchildren.
A note on spellings: the family name appears in census records and other documents as Privett, Privette, Previtt, Pruitt, and Pruit — common variations in an era when names were often written as the enumerator heard them. Throughout this biography, we use the spelling that appears on his death certificate and obituary: Previtte.
His Parents and Early Years
Mike's father, John Washington Previtte (1824–1913), was an old man by the time Mike came along — well into his fifties when his youngest son was born. John had seen the Civil War come and go, and by the 1900 census he was recorded as widowed, age 70, still living in Chesterfield County. Mike's mother, Elizabeth "Bette" Davis Previtte (1841–1900), had died by the time that census was taken, when Mike was just a teenager. Losing a mother at that age was no small thing, but it was far from uncommon in that era — life expectancy was short, medical care was scarce, and large families absorbed grief and kept moving forward.
The 1900 census captures a snapshot of Mike at 18, still living at home with his widowed father in Chesterfield County. The household also included his older siblings Jesse G. Previtte (born March 1877) and Emma F. Previtte (born July 1878). It was a modest farm family in a rural corner of South Carolina, not far from the North Carolina line. Cotton was king in Chesterfield County in those years, and most families — white and Black alike — worked the land through a combination of tenant farming, sharecropping, and small-hold agriculture. It is reasonable to suppose that young Mike grew up doing the same.
The world Mike was born into was still shaped by the aftershocks of the Civil War. South Carolina had only recently emerged from Reconstruction, and the economic depression of the rural South was a constant backdrop to everyday life. Yet within this hardship, communities like those in Chesterfield County maintained tight social and kinship networks — exactly the kind that would follow Mike north to Anson County when he eventually settled there.
Love and Marriage: Beulah Jane Teal
Sometime around 1909 — the 1910 census records them as having been married one year — Mike married Beulah Jane Teal in Chesterfield, South Carolina. She was born on July 16, 1889, in Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, making her about eight years younger than her husband. Beulah was the daughter of Edward Chambers Teal (1865–1944) and Della Ardella Brock (1866–1942), both of Anson County.
Their marriage likely brought Mike north. By the time of the 1910 census, the young couple had already settled in Morven, Anson County, North Carolina — Beulah's home territory — where they would remain for the rest of their lives. The Teal family roots ran deep in that part of Anson County, and Mike was folding himself into an established community. Beulah went by several names over the years — records show her as Bula, Bulah, and Jane — but the woman behind those names remained a constant presence in the family home in Morven for six decades.
To give a sense of the times: in 1909, the year Mike and Beulah wed, the Wright Brothers had made their famous flight just six years earlier, Henry Ford was rolling out the first Model T automobiles, and most rural families in the Carolinas still traveled by horse and wagon. Electricity and indoor plumbing were luxuries. Life was measured in seasons, harvests, and church Sundays.
The Children They Raised
Mike and Beulah had five children together, though their journey as parents was marked by heartbreak alongside joy.
Elizabeth Elma Previtte (January 1910 – 1986)
Their firstborn, Elma, arrived just a few months after they settled in Morven — she appears in the 1910 census as just 3 months old. She grew up on the family farm, remained in the Morven area, and by the time of her father's death in 1960 was living in Wadesboro as Mrs. Thomas Fisher. She outlived her father by more than two decades, passing away in 1986.
Eddie John Previtte, Sr. (August 9, 1912 – January 18, 1982)
Their eldest son, Eddie — called John Eddie in his father's obituary — was born in Morven on August 9, 1912. He married Louise Heavener (1913–2009) and they built a life in Wadesboro. Eddie and Louise had at least three sons: Eddie John Jr. (1935–2003), Jerry Michael (1942–2008), and Kenneth Warren (1949–2009). Eddie Sr. died on January 18, 1982, and is buried at Seago Cemetery in Wadesboro.
Allie Previtte (February 3, 1917 – September 30, 1917)
Little Allie lived only eight months. She was born on February 3, 1917, and died September 30, 1917, in Morven. Her burial was recorded in Chesterfield, South Carolina — likely near family connections across the state line. Infant mortality was tragically common in the early twentieth century; the loss of a child before her first birthday was a grief many families of that era knew all too well.
Michael Benton Previtte (January 22, 1920 – May 18, 1921)
Their fourth child, named after his father, was born January 22, 1920, but died just sixteen months later on May 18, 1921. Like his sister Allie, he was buried in Chesterfield, South Carolina. To lose two young children within a few years of each other was a sorrow that likely shaped the family's faith and resilience. By 1920, the census shows Mike and Beulah carrying on — Mike at 35, Beulah at 31, with Elma (10) and John E. (6) at home. Michael Benton would have been an infant at the time of that census.
Robert Griffin Previtte, Sr. (May 27, 1929 – November 11, 1982)
The youngest child, Robert, came along nearly a decade after the previous children, born on May 27, 1929 — the same year the stock market crashed and the Great Depression began. He appears as a ten-year-old in the 1940 census. Robert married Mary Louise Eddins (1930–2005), moved to Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina, and died there on November 11, 1982. He is buried in Greensboro.
Life on the Farm in Anson County
The census records paint a consistent picture: Mike Previtte was a farmer, and Morven — a small community in the southern part of Anson County — was his home. The 1910, 1920, and 1940 censuses all place the family there. It was a life shaped by the rhythms of planting and harvest, by weather and soil, by the cooperative effort of a farm family working together.
By 1940, Mike was 59 years old, and the household had changed. Elma, now 30, was still at home — soon to marry Thomas Fisher. Robert, just 10, was the youngest. Mike and Beulah had been married over thirty years. The Great Depression had hit farm families hard throughout the 1930s, bringing falling crop prices, drought in some regions, and the slow collapse of the tenant farming economy that had sustained rural communities since Reconstruction. It is a testament to the family's resilience that they endured.
One detail worth noting: the 1940 census spells the family name as "Pruit," a phonetic rendering typical of the era that underscores just how fluid surnames could be in rural census records. The family was consistent in who they were, even when the record-keepers were not consistent in how they spelled it.
World War I: Answering the Call
When the United States entered World War I in 1917, Mike Previtte was 35 years old — old enough to have young children at home and well-established on the farm, but still within the age range for draft registration. His World War I Draft Registration Card, filed in Anson County, North Carolina, records his birth date as November 16, 1881, and confirms him as a resident of Anson County. There is no evidence that he served in active military duty; many men of his age and circumstance were registered but not called up, as the draft prioritized younger, unmarried men. The draft registration itself, though, is a small reminder that the world beyond the Carolina farm was making itself felt.
That same year, 1917, little Allie Previtte died. It must have been a heavy year for the family.
Later Years and Passing
Mike Previtte spent his final years in Morven, much as he had spent all the years before. His obituary, published on the front page of The Anson Record on April 26, 1960, notes simply that he was "a retired farmer" who had been suffering from a "lengthy illness." His death certificate is more specific: he died of a cerebral hemorrhage resulting from arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease — hardening of the arteries — which had been a concern for the past twelve years. He died at 9:50 in the morning on April 23, 1960, at home in Morven. He was 78 years old.
Funeral services were held the following Sunday, April 24, at Sandy Plains Methodist Church in south Anson County, conducted by the Reverend J. H. Gleaton of Chesterfield, South Carolina — a nod to his roots across the state line — and the Reverend Melvin McIntosh, the local pastor. He was buried in the church cemetery at Sandy Plains United Methodist Church in Morven, where his tombstone reads November 16, 1882 — slightly different from the birth year on his death certificate and obituary, a discrepancy that genealogists have noted across multiple records.
He was survived by his wife Beulah, his daughter Mrs. Thomas (Elma) Fisher of Wadesboro, his sons John Eddie Previtte of Wadesboro and Robert Griffin Previtte of Greensboro, and eight grandchildren.
Beulah's Later Years
Beulah Jane Teal Previtte outlived her husband by nearly a decade. She remained in Morven after Mike's passing and died on November 22, 1969, in Wadesboro, Anson County. She was 80 years old. She is buried beside her husband in Sandy Plains United Methodist Church Cemetery in Morven — a fitting resting place for a woman who had spent her entire adult life in that community.
Her Find A Grave memorial records her parents as Edward Chambers Teal and Delia Ardela Brock Teal, and notes her siblings: John Bunyan Teal (1887–1941), William Benjamin Teal (1891–1965), C. Edward Teal (1893–1969), and Alma Teal Prevatte (1910–1995).
The Family at a Glance
Parents of Michael Davis Previtte:
Father: John Washington Previtte (1824–1913), Chesterfield County, South Carolina
Mother: Elizabeth "Bette" Davis Previtte (1841–1900), Chesterfield County, South Carolina
Wife: Beulah Jane Teal (July 16, 1889, Morven, NC – November 22, 1969, Wadesboro, NC). Married c. 1909, Chesterfield, SC. Buried Sandy Plains United Methodist Church Cemetery, Morven, NC.
Children:
1. Elizabeth Elma Previtte (January 1910, Morven, NC – 1986). Married Thomas Fisher. Lived in Wadesboro, NC.
2. Eddie John Previtte, Sr. (August 9, 1912, Morven, NC – January 18, 1982, Wadesboro, NC). Married Louise Heavener (1913–2009). Buried Seago Cemetery, Wadesboro, NC.
3. Allie Previtte (February 3, 1917, Anson County, NC – September 30, 1917, Morven, NC). Buried Chesterfield, SC.
4. Michael Benton Previtte (January 22, 1920, Anson County, NC – May 18, 1921, Morven, NC). Buried Chesterfield, SC.
5. Robert Griffin Previtte, Sr. (May 27, 1929, Anson County, NC – November 11, 1982, Greensboro, NC). Married Mary Louise Eddins (1930–2005). Buried Greensboro, NC.
Michael Davis Previtte is my Great GrandUncle.
Sources
1. Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, database and digital images, (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 3 June 2012); Memorial page for Michael Davis Previtte; (16 November 1882–23 April 1960); Find a Grave memorial # 39663217, Citing Sandy Plains United Methodist Church Cemetery; Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, USA.
2. 1900 U. S. Census, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, population schedule, Court House, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, enumeration district (ED) #21, Page 107A, Line 30, Family/Dwelling 424/431, Household of John W. PRIVETT; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : viewed 21 July 2011); citing National Archives Microfilm T623_Roll: 1523.
3. 1910 U. S. Census, Anson County, North Carolina, population schedule, Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, enumeration district (ED) #0012, Page 183A, Line 46, Dwelling 46, Family 46, Household of Mike PREVITT; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 23 July 2011); citing National Archives Microfilm T624, Roll 1096.
4. "World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," on-line digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 3 June 2012), Mike Davis Previtt; citing Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls, FHL Roll Number: 1765559.
5. 1920 U. S. Census, Anson County, North Carolina, population schedule, Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, enumeration district (ED) #12, Page: 179B (stamped), Line 83, Dwelling 171, Family 174, Household of Michael D. PREVITT; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 23 July 2011); citing National Archives Microfilm Series: T625, Roll: 1283.
6. 1940 U. S. Census, Anson County, North Carolina, population schedule, Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, enumeration district (ED) 4-19, ; Page: 9B/234 (stamped); Line 49, Household #137, Household of Mike D. PRUIT [PREVITTE]; digital images, 1940 CENSUS (www.ancestry.com : viewed 5 March 2014); citing NARA microfilm publication T627, roll 2871.
7. Mike Previtte Died Saturday In Morven obituary, The Anson Record, Wadesboro, North Carolina, 26 April 1960, Front Page.
8. 1910 U. S. Census, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, population schedule, Court House, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, enumeration district (ED) 0037, Page 135B/9B; Line 86, Dwelling 160, Family 160, Household of Lester DAVIS; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : viewed 4 June 2012); citing National Archives Microfilm T624_1455.
9. State of North Carolina, death certificates no. 37208 (22 November 1969), Beulah Jane Previtt; https://www.ancestry.com, Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina.
10. Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, database, "Record, Beulah Jane Teal Previtte (16 July 1889–22 November 1969), Memorial # 39663271.
A Note on Sources
This biography draws on the Family Group Sheet prepared by Charles Purvis of Thomasville, North Carolina. Primary sources include U.S. Federal Census records for 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1940; North Carolina Death Certificates for Mike Davis Previtte (Certificate #10752) and Beulah Jane Previtt; the World War I Draft Registration Card for Mike Davis Previtte filed in Anson County; Find A Grave memorials #39663217 (Michael Davis Previtte) and #39663271 (Beulah Jane Teal Previtte); and the obituary published in The Anson Record, Wadesboro, North Carolina, April 26, 1960. Historical context draws on general knowledge of life in the rural Carolinas during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Prepared May 28, 2026 · Source: Family Group Sheet by Charles Purvis, Thomasville, NC
