Lost right ear in farm accident 1930
Melyin J. Wyatt, 1872-1965, (Born in Logan Co. IL)(Buried in Lime Springs, Mitchel Co., IA) continued farming with the assistance of his third son, Oliver until he was 68 years old. Age, changing markets, mechanization and Oliver's desire to try something else, all served to bring Mels career to an end. After that, he worked as a hired hand for neighbors until well into his 70"s. At one point in time he had, with labor intensive methods, farmed 300 acres with the help of his children and often one or more "hired men" (farm laborers). He never owned any land because as he put it,
. . . they'll just take it away from you anyway This reflected his attitude toward
either or both, government on any level and/or the banking industry. Mel believed that
7 or 8 years of education was quite enough, certainty for the girls who didn't need
more because, '. . . they are only going to get married and have a batch of kids!" And besides, it meant boarding in town at almost $3.75 a week, making it impossible.
These l9th century attitudes were likewise illustrated by his strictly forbidding swearing in the house in the presence of women and girls.
Mel was part of that generation who were forced to attempt to adapt from a horse and buggy to an automobile. He never quite made it. The concept of a friction clutch escaped him. His driving process was to increase the revolutions of the engine so it would not kill, then let the clutch in rapidly. Every start was a huge lunge forward. To Mel, stopping at a stop sign was purely optional unlessi there actually was traffic in the intersection at the time.To the Wyetts, religion is generic Christian in form. Certainly baptism is important, and weddings and funerals properly belong in Church. But from there on it is largely a matter of the Lord helping those who help themselves. Church attendance is irregular at best
The children of Melvin Wyett are universally possessed with a strong work ethic. An occasional Sunday afternoon spent fishing or visiting with family or friends seems permissible, but most often with what most would call leisure time, things are repaired or new things are fashioned. Work is both a livelihood and an entertainment.
Yet, nowhere can there be found meaningful attempts to acquire much in the way of material wealth. They just don't try to "keep up with the Joneses (keeping up appearances?) The goal seemes to be a high degree of self sufficient independence. Unemployment, often during periods when no jobs were available is not found among these industrious people.
For two generations, there were no marriages broken other than by the death of
a spouse at a relatively advanced age.With the exception of the laissez faire attitude toward religion, these characteristics are common among those generations of people who resided in the rural regions of the mid western states.
George Byron Wyett , 1904-1930, (Born in Olive Branch, IL)(Buried in Lime Springs, Mftchell Co., IA) worked as a farm labourer until a kidney injury as a result of a fall on a grain combine (harvester) in South Dakota fatally turned gangrenous.
As an infant died during an epidemic of influenza that accompanied world war 1.
At the time there was a ban on public gatherings such as funerals. Her father and a neighbour built a wooden casket and took her to the cemetery and buried her without a funeral in an unmarked grave
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