Hugo Pratt origin, his maternal grandfather was of Marrano (Jewish) descent, and his grandmother was of Turkish origin. He was also related to actor Boris Karloff (né William Henry Pratt). In 1937, Pratt moved with his mother to Abyssinia (Ethiopia), joining his father who was working there following the conquest of that country by Benito Mussolini's Italy. Pratt's father, a professional Italian soldier, was captured in 1941 by British troops and in late 1942, died from disease as a prisoner of war. The same year, Hugo Pratt and his mother were interned in a prison camp at Dirédaoua, where he would buy
Henry Pratt Co an additional plant was purchased for the manufacture of valves. The plant, located at 900 Depot Avenue in Dixon, Illinois, was composed of buildings dating back to the Civil War. After the Civil War, the buildings housed the Grand Detour Plow Works, which was a forerunner of the John Deere Company. This plant was closed in 2007. There was a great demand for valves of all types in the decades following World War II, as the construction industry boomed and corresponding municipal projects grew. As a result, Henry Pratt Co added ball valves, check valves and various types of butterfly