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- Edward Henry Prosser was born on December 7, 1913, in Marshall County, Tennessee. His parents were Edward (Edd) Henry Prosser and Bertha Francis Petty. He was the fourth of six children. Grace, Ward, Pet, and Lee preceded him in death. His brother Joe Prosser who resides in Moore Haven, Florida, survives him. Henry was married to Maude Ruth Whorley. They were married on May 3, 1941. She passed away August 30, 1985. The surviving members of his family are his son, Bobby and his daughter-in-law, Bettye with whom he has resided since February of 1985. Also surviving are his granddaughters and their spouses: Marzee and W. D. Woodward of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; Melody and James Baker of Tacoma, Washington; Melinda and John Lanza of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; Mitzi and Ernie Dunkley of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; and Mandy Prosser of Dickson, Tennessee. Ten great-grandchildren survive him: Lauren and Kristin Woodward, Joshua and Bethany Baker, Morgan, Mackenzie, and Mason Lanza, and Devin, Dashiell, and Dallin Dunkley.
He spent most of his adult life as a farmer in Marshall and Bedford counties. He always enjoyed talking about the days when mules did most of the farm work. Every time you passed through Santa Fe and Unionville he would say, “I bought a real pair of mules there.” I guess you would say that he had a love/hate relationship of mules. One of the animals that he always laughed about was an old mule (by age) that was named “Old Algebra” that he had purchased from Mr. Bob Jordan in Franklin. He used “Old Algebra” to work out tobacco patches and gardens. The old mule was trained so that when the tailgate on the farm truck was dropped he would jump up in the bed of the truck like a dog. This was a sight to see. Sometimes “Old Algebra” had a head of his own. I guess that is why they worked so well together.
As a young man, Dad grew up during the Depression years and he would remind you of what it was like to work for 50 cents per day. He always loved to tell about his earlier years and with some of the tales he would get so tickled that he would have great laughter. One of the tales that he always loved to repeat was about some neighbor man (this story is not told to embarrass anyone). This man was named Mr. Caughorn and he had another neighbor by the name of D. Elmer Massey that was helping with some farm chores. As was the custom of that day the farmer that was receiving the work had the other farmer to eat dinner with him. A day prior D. Elmer Massey had made the statement that he could not stand pumpkin. Mr. Caughorn told his wife that he did not care how she prepared it but she must serve pumpkin in many different ways for dinner the next day. So his wife prepared pumpkin in different ways and that was all that was served for dinner that next day. When they arrived at the dinner table Mr. Massey had to eat pumpkin. Later that afternoon Mr. Caughorn said to Mr. Massey, “I thought that you did not like pumpkin.” To which Massey replied, “Well it was PUNKIN or NUTTIN!”
He always enjoyed picking on or joking with his nephews, especially Alben and Wayne Simmons, Ward’s boys: Don, Jimmy, and Sammy, and his granddaughters, grandson-in-laws and great-grandchildren.
He thought that his wife, Ruth had “hung the moon.” Whatever Ruth did was perfect. It is understood that he and Ruth eloped without Ma Whorley’s permission. Evidently, Ma Whorley was a forgiving person because he had a great respect for her and always referred to her as Mrs. Whorley.
His heritage traces to many surnames of early families that settled in the Lincoln, Marshall, and Moore county areas: Prosser, Petty, Johnston, Norris, Richardson, Bagley, Cook, Jackson, Sullivan, Wicker, Gunter, Hamblett, Benton, Long, Hester, and McCallister.
He was a member of the church of Christ and has worshipped with the congregation at Pond in Dickson County for the past 20 years.
(Bobby Prosser)
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1913 - 2005 (91 years)
