Harvey Hight

HIGHT, DICKEY, HASKENS, GARRUTT

Posted By: Darsi Neff (email)
Date: 4/10/2008 at 20:29:21

HARVEY HIGHT

An early settler of Audubon county, Iowa, and a man who gave nearly four years of his life to the service of his country and who is now a well known farmer and stockman of Douglas township, Audubon county, is Harvey Hight, who was born, June 22, 1832 in Ohio. Mr. Hight’s parents, Nicholas and Phoebe Hight, were born in New Jersey and Ohio, respectively. After working for many years as a ship carpenter in Cincinnati, the father emigrated to Illinois, where he bought a farm of a hundred and sixty acres. Selling this farm after cultivating it for a few years, he came to Iowa, thence to Charles City, and retired at the age of seventy-four, having reared a family of four children, Mary, Daniel, Thomas and Harvey. Of these children, Mary lives in Charles City, and Daniel and Thomas are deceased.

During the boyhood of Harvey Hight, the educational facilities in the state of Illinois, where he then lived, were considerably more limited that they are at the present time, and he was compelled to quit school at the age of fourteen, and engage in farm work, at which he continued for a period of six years. A part of the time, a period of about two years, he spent in working on the canal connecting Chicago and Peoria. Returning to the farm, he again spent two years in this vocation, but in 1861 enlisted in the Fifty-second Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and became a private soldier in Company D. He served in the war three years and eight months, and after the war rented a farm of two hundred and forty acres in Illinois. During the seven years which he occupied this farm he was able to save considerable money.

In 1879 Mr. Hight came to Iowa, loating at Walnut, where he stayed, however, only six months, at the end of which time he came to Audubon county and bought eighty acres of land for eight dollars an acre. Mr. Hight kept on adding to the original tract, until he owned two hundred and seven and sixty-eight hundreds acres near the Fiscus store. His part in improving the agricultural life of this community can be understood best, when it is recalled that he spent nearly ten thousand dollars in improving this land. During his entire career he has been accustomed to feed all of his grain to live stock raised on the farm. He sells about a carload of cattle every two years, and about fifty head of hogs every year.

In 1865, at the close of the Civil War, Mr. Hight was married to Margaret J. Dickey, daughter of Isaac and Lucinda Dickey, of Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Hight have had five children, L.D., Belle, Charles, William and Elmer, the last two of whom are deceased. L.D. Hight married Dora Garrutt, and they live in Douglas township. Belle married Ed Haskens, and they live on a part of Mr. Hight’s farm.

For many years Harvey Hight has been identified with the Republican party, and for twelve years was trustee of his township, and road supervisor for twelve years. He also served as a school director for three years. Fraternally, Mr. Hight is a member of the Independent Order fo Odd Fellows, a secret society which he joined in the state of Illinois, but is not active at present. Religiously, Harvey Hight and family are members of the Christian Church. They are well known in Douglas township; are respected citizens, honored for their industry and admired for their success as progressive, up-to-date farmers. Mr. Hight retired to Audubon in 1909, but makes his home in the summer time for the last two years on his home farm.

Source: 1915 History of Audubon County, pages 501-502.