Edward Paul Knight

WELLS, HUNT, JACOBS, WYCKOFF, ASHMAN

Posted By: Ken Baker (email)
Date: 4/27/2009 at 20:30:59

Edward Paul Knight was born June 3, 1929 in Ringgold County, the youngest child of Orr and Hattie (Jacobs) Knight.

He graduated from Mount Ayr Community High School in 1947. As a senior, he was proud to be a member of an undefeated football team and was voted to the first team of the Blue Grass Conference. Edward's strength allowed him to excel in athletics as a young man and do much physical work throughout his life, which he enjoyed.

Edward married Millicent (Ann) Wells on April 27, 1964, and they had one daughter, Lynnette Ann.

Edward was a unique, unpretentious person who had many interests and keen observations of the world and how it worked. He read a lot and kept abreast of current events especially in agricultural trends. Edward thought a lot about taking care of his land, and reveled in getting cat work and improvements for the farm. He like working outside on his WDs and maintaining them, which he had bought new in his early years of farming. Throughout his life, Edward grew crops, harvested and sold seed, and raised sheep, hogs, and cattle - even at one time shipping a planeload of live cattle to Japan. He displayed an extreme patience and kindness towards animals and was diligent in his attempts to nurse a sick animal back to health. He and his wife Millie operated as a team in their livestock operation in their years together.

Edward had an appreciation for many types of plants, especiallyl old fashioned roses, farm variety hollyhocks, the value of birdsfoot trefoil in a pasture, growing his own apples, grapes and a good tomato. Edward did, however, dispise wild carrots (Queen Anne's Lace) and brome grass which he earnestly tried to eradicate from his land.

Edward annually went to the Iowa State Fair with his daughter spending several days letting the fair "go by him." He was a story teller with a rich memory of the people he met and his varied experiences in life. He regularly visited with people throughout the years at such places as Cross' Station and the Shamrock Cafe. He enjoyed having a dog, which went along wherever he went. Edward had a distinctive laugh, sneeze and clothing style. He also responded to the western landscape and enjoying traveling out west many times to California and Las Vegas.

Edward is preceded in death by his parents and his wife, his siblings Richard and Howard Knight, Louise (Knight) Wyckoff and Marjorie (Knight) Ashman. He is survived by his daughter Lynnette and her husband George Hunt, four sisters-in-law, two brothers-in-law, and a number of nieces and nephews and cousins.

Funeral services December 26, 2000, Wilson-Watson and Armstrong Funeral Home, Mount Ayr, Iowa, Reverends Brantner and Lampe-Zeitler officiating. Musicians Mrs. Keith Sackett and Mrs. Tom Larson, casketbearers Jack Hoffman, Barton Shields, Josh Shields, John Campbell, Dale Bickel, and Gerold Willey. At rest Rose Hill Cemetery, Mount Ayr, Iowa.