Obituary, Eulogies, and Memorial Service

Obituary

Harleigh Knott died Saturday, March 2, at 90 years, coincidentally at the very time she was to give a talk on her Middle East travels in the mid-twentieth century. Harleigh (b. 1/21/29) was the elder of two daughters born to Rachel and Harold Knott, in Morro Bay. Her father was a noted landscape painter on the central and north coast; this formed the background for one of Harleigh’s three loves—art, ancient history, and opera, especially Wagner’s. She held a B.A. in history from Stanford University (1950) and a Diploma from the New York School of Interior Design (1965).

Her work career, her interests, and her travels were wide: She was a civilian employee of the US Air Force at the Pentagon from 1950-55 and at the American Embassy in London from 1955-59. She was Director of a student residence at Stanford 1959-60, travelled and worked in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia 1960-1, and was a secretarial-administrator at the cardiology department of Stanford Medical School during the ‘60s and ’70s. When she came back to live in Morro Bay, she was a librarian at Morro Bay High School.

Her travels took her through Europe and into Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Israel, Jordan and Lebanon, always being alive to the history of the places she visited. Her interests, too, were varied: She loved movies, opera, reading, news, Indy races, polo, horse races, dog shows, baking, sewing, thrift shops, interesting people, good food and wine, cats, and hats, hats, hats. She was a member of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Morro Bay, AAUW, Stanford Alumni Association, the Wagner Society, Morro Bay Historical Society, (and a contributor to the book, Morro Bay Yesterdays,) Laguna Art Museum, and Monterey Museum of Art.

Services will be held 4 pm Wednesday, March 13, at St. Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church, 545 Shasta, Morro Bay. Donations in remembrance may be made to St. Peter’s or to other charities she supported; the names can be obtained from the church office.