James Taylor

TAYLOR, STEELE

Posted By: Deb Barker (email)
Date: 10/30/2004 at 08:44:59

HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY IOWA-
James Taylor was born in Knox County, Tennessee, near Strawberry Plains, April 5, 1819, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Steele) Taylor, the former a native of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and the latter of North Carolina. James Taylor was reared in his native State till 1833, when he went with his parents to Owen County, Indiana, and there engaged in farming. In the spring of 1845, he and his family immigrated to Iowa, and five years later was followed by his father's family. They located in Davis County, and in the fall of 1846 our subject went to the land office at Fairfield, and entered forty acres of land in Davis County. He removed to Troy in October, 1848, and engaged in the boot and shoe business. Four years later he bought a carding machine which he operated three years, and in the spring of 1856 he purchased a steam saw-mill which he set up in Davis County, running his mill here till the fall of 1860. He then moved his mill to the border of Decatur C!
ounty, Iowa, remaining there until 1863. He then sold out, and the same year came to Wayne County and located in Richman Township, about three miles from Humeston, where he engaged in farming. He disposed of this farm in the spring of 1871, and with his son, W.J.S., purchased the steam grist-mill at Lineville, Wayne County, which they ran for two years when they erected the steam grist-mill at Humeston which is now owned by the son, Mr. Taylor having disposed of his interest in 1880, since which he has retired to a great extent from active business life. In 1880 he built the city hall block in Humeston, containing the opera hall, but has since sold the upper part of this building. Mr. Taylor was married July 13, 1841 to Elizabeth F. Steele, of Owen County, Indiana. They are the parents of seven children -- W.J. Sylvester; Jane Hazeltine, wife of W.M. Veatch, living in Kansas; Elizabeth, wife of W.F. Chamberlain, of Colorado; Asilee A., wife of H. Stone, of Humeston;
Clara S., wife of J. R. Hendricks, of Kansas; Henrietta, at home, and Addie M., teacher in the high school at Concordia, Kansas. Mr. Taylor is a staunch temperance advocate, and is at present lodge deputy of Humeston Lodge, No. 86, I.O.G.T. He is a Presbyterian in his religious views. Politically he affiliates witht he Republican party. His first vote cast was for General Harrison for President, and voted for James G. Grimes, the first Republican Governor of Iowa