Item Detail
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Hiatt, Mertie Adell Harris
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1884-1974
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MSS SC 902
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Autobiography
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Mertie Adell Harris Hiatt was born July 27, 1884, to Charles Harris and Louisa Maria Hall Harris, the youngest of 11 children. At the time of her birth, the family was living in a two room log cabin on a ranch about 5 miles from Junction, Piute County, Utah. The family moved to another ranch in the canyon 50 miles north of Bryce, Utah when Mertie was three years old. She remembered her brothers being attentive to her childhood fancies and her father building her a small swing at this home. The family then moved to Junction where Mertie hunted for pollywogs and water snakes, waded in ditches, and played with her pet deer. She enjoyed a happy childhood in this area although her schooling was interrupted many times. Mertie, two brothers, and her mother moved to Provo in about 1896 where she resumed her schooling. In keeping with the practice of polygamy, her father married a friend of the family and remained in Junction with his new wife and family. Mertie writes of her mother's unselfishness and good desires in this decision. Mertie records no negative feelings about polygamy and the experiences of her family, only the unselfish teachings and faith her mother shared. Before entering High School, Mertie and her mother moved to a home in Salt Lake City where they did temple work together for a year. Mertie said this was 'The HIGH LIGHT OF [her] LIFE. Being close to [her] mother in that sacred work was a most precious and unforgettable experience.' She attended the Latter-day Saints University for high school, as well as B.Y.U. In the summer of 1908 she took classes at the University of Utah to prepare to be a teacher. She taught at the Spencer School in Provo, Utah, and then registered for a course in Normal Training for teachers at B.Y.U. in 1909. She graduated in the spring of 1910 after which she taught school for two years in Scofield, Utah. This concluded her teaching career, and that summer she met Nathan Dixie Hiatt (Dixie). He left for a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the fall of 1913, and when he returned, they were married in the Salt Lake Temple on February 16, 1916. Dixie and Mertie were the parents of 6 children. Mertie passed away December 1, 1974 in Provo, Utah.
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Mertie's autobiography is included in the family papers of her parents, Charles Harris and Louisa Marie Hall Harris. There is a brief history of Emer Harris, Mertie's grandfather, who was a brother to Martin Harris, one of the three witnesses of the Book of Mormon. There are also histories of Mertie's maternal grandparents, her parents, and each of her brothers and sisters. Mertie was motivated to write her life history because she knew that if she had access to genealogical records from her ancestors they would be priceless treasures. Mertie's autobiography is eleven very descriptive, typed pages with subheadings. After moving to Provo, Mertie grew to love singing and art from her lessons in school. She took a class at BYU in physical education as well as dressmaking. She made nice clothes for herself including 'a cute sailor blouse with long sleeves and bloomers.' She wrote about attending a birthday celebration for Karl G. Maeser with her brother Albert. During high school, her mother moved to Farmington, Utah, and Mertie roomed with a close friend. They both worked off their school tuition by addressing envelopes to parents of delinquent or absent students. Mertie's first experience teaching school was in a two room log school house at the back of the main school building at the Spencer School in Provo. Then, while teaching her first year in Scofield, she had 56 students. She negotiated with the principal to let one class come in the morning and one in the evening her second year. This plan worked well. She enjoyed spending time outdoors and using her Kodak camera to take pictures. Following her teaching career, she moved to Payson to live with her brother Albert and his family. She wrote often of the time spent with her nieces and nephews and the love she had for each of them. While in Payson, she met Dixie, her husband. He had diligently saved up his earnings for a mission and although sad to see him go, Mertie fully supported him in this decision. Her father passed away just two weeks before she and Dixie were married in the Salt Lake City Temple. During their married life, Dixie and Mertie faced many financial hardships. Dixie left to work in the Eureka mines in the fall of 1916, and Mertie stayed with her mother in Provo until she gave birth to their first son in April 1917. In June she moved to Eureka to be with Dixie. She was patient and cheerful during the times of trial, and said, 'Both sunshine and sorrow graced our lives during this trying period.' They then moved to Payson and eventually to Provo. Mertie wrote of the great joy she found in her motherhood and how proud she was of her children. During the depression, they incurred more financial mishaps and hardships, and she wrote of the government programs that were helpful during that time. Mertie watched each of her sons and one of her son-in-laws enter into the army during WWII. Dixie was working various jobs during this time and suffered a fatal heart attack in September 1944. Mertie wrote of the support she received from her family and her husband's co-workers at that time who sent her money. After her husband's passing, she used the money he had saved as well as the money her children offered to find a little house in Provo. She wrote this autobiography at 84 years of age, and was the last living child of her mother at that time. At the end of her autobiography, there is a brief description of Mertie's involvement in the Hiatt family history. Mertie did extensive work with her husband's family history including assisting in the printing of a book. This record is cheerful and enlightening and is evidence of Mertie's great character. Frontier Utah.
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