Foreword

We first met Harleigh when we moved to a house across the street from her in Morro Bay in late 2000. Her cat, Whiskers, was lost, and being cat people ourselves, we helped locate him. We soon learned that Harleigh was a fixture of our small fishing village, and was often seen walking along the street, tall and slender and always dressed in proper English fashion.

Over the next nineteen years we got to know Harleigh quite well – or so we always thought. We helped her change lightbulbs, set up printers, and provide rides to the train station. In return she’d tell us stories of her travels around the world. Her interests were wide and varied, which we often realized in a sudden, unexpected manner. At dinner one evening she was telling us how she was planning one of her frequent trips to Santa Barbara for shopping and to watch a polo match but needed to be back home by Sunday afternoon. We asked why. She said she couldn’t miss her Indy car race on TV. Wait… what? Sure enough, she also had a passion for car racing

Harleigh’s father, Arthur Harold Knott (going by Harold), was born in Canada but moved to Vermont soon after. He studied art at the Pratt Institute in New York, then  settled in Carmel, California, and would become rather famous for his watercolor landscapes. Harleigh’s mother, Rachel Louise Thayer, was a descendant of 17th century English settlers, and the daughter of the mayor or Norwich, Connecticut. After high school she left to travel and live in South America and Europe, where she married a Canadian doctor. Her husband was killed during WWI. She returned to the U.S. and enrolled at Stanford, double majoring in English and Classics. After some time in Santa Fe, New Mexico, she found her way to Carmel, where she met Harold who would become her second husband.

Harold and Rachel soon moved down the coast to Morro Bay, where they bought a home and eventually added an artist studio. Morro Bay at the time had a lively British  colony, which especially appealed to Rachel. Harleigh and then Nona were born and raised in the home. During WWII they moved to a neighbor’s house for a few years so that military officers could rent their home. Harleigh followed in her mother’s footsteps, going to Stanford to receive a degree in history, and then exploring the world. Her mother died in 1957, then her sister in 1962, and her father in 1976. Harleigh eventually returned to spend the rest of her days in her childhood home.

Harleigh had a thirst for knowledge and subscribed to innumerable newspapers and magazines. The librarian side of her took that one step further with a massive filing system with clippings related to her interests. Opera, travel, politics, even Indy cars and frogs. Her friends knew that if they brought up a topic over dinner there would often be a small plastic bag on our doorstep the next morning with clippings related to that topic – some from decades ago.

A highlight for many of us was her annual Christmas letter, which she labored over for months – sometimes to the point that she never finished it until the following year. They were exceptionally detailed, especially when describing her world travels, and humorous even when describing the aches and pains of aging.

Harleigh never married and was a very private person, especially about her personal and family life. When she passed unexpectedly earlier this year, we discovered she had a wealth of friends from the many phases of her life, as well as some distant relatives. At her memorial we shared stories of the thoughtful, eclectic, and humorous Harleigh we loved.

To preserve the memory and legacy of this remarkable lady we have tried to compile as many of her famous Christmas letters as we could locate, keeping the few grammar and spelling errors. We also included some of her other public writing and speeches, as well as some photographs and other materials. Mindful of respecting her privacy, we have not included private letters or information.

Rest in peace, Harleigh.

Kevin and Kimberly Meyer

Morro Bay, California - April 2019