William and Ann (Wilson) Taylor of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania
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• • , •' - ,. ~ o"' r ' HISTORY OF THE TAYLOR FAMILY THE DESCENDANTS OF William and Ann (Wilson) Taylor of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania ·· · ": . ..: ... ~· - -_., ....· · : . : .·· ...~ ·~ · - ..;-. ~ ':'.. :··:.·. : ·. t..t·!'. RECORDS GATHERED BY ' " r ..... ~ TH OMAS M. T AYLOR 1895 HEVISED A~D ADDED TO BY THOMAS lVI. STEWART _:f,G~ 1925 (r; -t\__ k 1 IJ o-f ~ 4-}-. t.:.-h~ If ... .. INTRODUCTION WI~IAM AND ANN TAYLOR WRITTEN BY THOMAS M .2 TAYLOR At a re-union of the Taylor family in the month of Aug ust, 1894, it was suggested that a history or record of the de William• Taylor was born at Ballymena, in the County scendants of William' and Ann Taylor, the founders of the Antrim, Ireland , in 1777. A short digression must be made Taylor famil y of Beaver and Lawrence counties, Pennsyl to show the condition of that country for 200 years previous vania, be made and continued, and Thomas M.2 Taylor, being to that time. · · the oldest Jiving member of the family, was selected by those In 1601° a bloody rebellion occurred, terrible slaughter present to undertake the task, or at least make a commence emt:ed and 20,000 Irishmen were sold as slaves and 40,000 ment. entered foreign service to escape from tyranny at home. In A full and complete history will scarcely be expected, 1690 another rebellion took place, when the battle of the but from such data as I have been able to procure, as well as Boyne decided the fate of Ireland. Irish subjects outlawed personal knowledge of a great portion of it, I respectfully were 300,000, and their possessions confiscated amounted to submit the fo llowing pages-leaving plenty of blank pages one-million six-hundred-thousand acres. for my successor to enlarge, improve and correct when neces- Next came the rebellion of 1796-8. Insurgents, excluded sary. THOMAS M. TAYLOR from all quarter, fled and were pursued with great slaughter, and sacrificed their lives for devotion to t heir country. According to a French genealogist, the original ancestor Many Irishmen who had not been in active rebellion, but of the Taylor family was one Wulgrin, grandfather of Will had given aid and sympathy to the insurgents were marked iam Taillefer, who was created Count of Perigord and An· for vengeance. Among those were William Taylor and James gouleme in Normandy by his kinsman, Charles the Bold of Wilson, near neighbors and about the same age. My father France. According to Burke's History of the Landed Gent had an additional reason for haste in getting out of the coun ry of England, the Norman baron Taillefer accompanied try. I never heard him speak of it, but a son of James Wil William the Conqueror in his invasion of England in 1066, son related the circumstances to me during the past year, as and fe ll in the Battle of Hastings. The name has been var he had gotten them from his father. It seems that a British iously spelled, from Taillefer, Taliaferro, T aylefer, Taylard, officer was berating the Irish in general- said they were all cowards and ought to be hanged - when my fat her promptly and fin ally modernized into Taylor. It is common in Eng land and Scotland. knocked him down, and as promptly got out of the ·way. There was no safety for them in Ireland, and they determin William' Taylor was born Dec. 24, 1776, at Gilgin Park, ed to leave for America at once. They started for the· near near Ballymena, in Antrim, Ireland. He married in 1802 est seaport, about 30 miles distant, carrying with them suffic Ann Wilson, the ceremony being performed by Samuel Bond, ient provisions for the voyage, took a steerage passage and Esq., all parties being of Chillisquaque township, Northum went aboard. berland county, Pa. Ann Wilson was born Nov. 23, 1780, on From some unforeseen cause the ship was delayed in port the Juniata river in Mifflin county, Pa. William• Taylor two or three weeks, and their stock of provisions was running died Oct. 25, 1856, aged 79 years, 10 months and a day, in Lawrence county, Pa. Ann (Wilson) Taylor died Dec. HI, •For the facts in this regard read some history of England. 1863, aged 83 years and 26 days. in Lawrence county, Pa. August 20, 1925. THOMAS l\J. STEWART ~ ~ ~~ ~~'<.._ ~~ fiiiHUf llttllllfttHUUitfttfUIIIIIIHIIIIIfflllllltlllffiiiiiUIIItllltllllfiii'Htllflllltlfllllltfltooloooflllllflfllltlltftfftt l fffffltf llESCENDANTS OF' WILLIAM AND AN!-! T .\YI,CIIl :1 <11111111111111UIIIIIIftlllflfii1UifllllllllllllllllllllllllftitflltlllltfH IIII1fllfUflflltlllltlllltflllfllftlllfllt11UIIflll1llllllllllll 2 Ut·:SCENIHN'l'S OF' WILt.lA~t :\NI) AN:-.1 '1'.\YLU lt ----------------------------------------------- the same in summer. H ere the writer graduated about t he low. Here was a quandary. They had no money with which year 18.'30, at the age of 12. The teachers had to be paid a nd to buy more, and it was dangerous for either to return hom.t no money was in the treasury. I well remember of four or for a fresh supply. But the situation was desperate, and tt five different teachers who boarded at our house during the was finally decided that my father, who was the more active whole term. They paid nothing for boarding and got no and vi~orous, should go. He disguised himself as well as he money for schooling, and thus the account was squared :;at could, changing clothes with one of the sailors, t ravelletl in isfactorily to all. the night, kept out. the most public high ways, reached home, Duriog the hard struggle of 20 years on that place moth got a fre~ h supply of provisions and returned safely in time er bore un complainingly her full share. She had excellent for the sailing of the vessel. health, a fair education for t he times, a retenti\·e memory. In due lime they landed near Philadelphia. glad to ha\'e She was well read in the Scriptures, and especially in the Old escaped from the iron heel of Britis h oppression and full of Testament, and could quote from memory the greater port hope for t he future in the land of freedom. icm of Dadd's Psalms in metre. Under more fa\'orable cir cumstances she would have been a model of the proprieties From here father worked his way up into N orthumber of life. As it was her influence was limited by her surrou nd lantl count y, Pennsylvania, where in 18:>2 he married M is~ ings and by stern poverty. Ann \\"ilson, a farmer's daughter, of whom hereafter. The great Senator Benton, in speak i n~ of the influence In 1808, after four children had been born to them, they of his mother, who had li\'ed a widow for 50 years and whose embarked in a two-horse wagon with their children and all house had been the abode of many eminent men of the times, their worldly possessions and came to Bea\·er county. Here says "a pack of cards was never seen in her house··. I can seven more children were born to them, making eleven, all of not say that of my mother. She found out that a young whom grew up healthy and all married and had families. man who was then stopping at her house hld a pack of card:; About the year 1815 they bought a farm near E non. with in his possession. She charged him with it. He did not de poor improvements, ha\·ing only about half enough mon~~ ny. She insi$ted that they be burned. He objected, alleging to pay for the land. Here commenced the great strugg.e. that they had cost 25 cents. She proposed to pay for them. Land to be paid fo r - improvements to be made-and such a He assented and the cards were committed to the flames then family to be fed, clothed and educated: and there. I think it might be truthfully added that it Clothing was emphatically of domestic manufacture. would have been better for that young man had that been Not only was it made up at home, but the material out o( the only pack of cards he ever handled. which it was made was grown on the farm, namely, flax for Father and mother were both in their youth members of summer and wool for winter, and all had to be spun and wov the church in the places where they were born, viz., the one en at home. in Ireland, the other in Northumberland county, Pa. Old Father had enjoyed but poor opportunitie5 for school i n~ certificates of membership, in a good state of preservation, and therefore wa~ all th1! more an~ious t o secure ior his child are now in my possession, as follows viz.: ren a good common school education. There was no school house in reach. One must be built. I do certify that the bearer, William Taylor, was a and he was among the foremost in helping t o build n lo!{ regular member of this congregation, is the son of school house in the woods pear our home, when fo1· many respectable parents, and a young man of a fair anrJ yea1·s there w_as n school for three months in the winter nnd 0 • II IO OII!IIIItlllolllllllllllllllttlltlllllllllltlllltUitii!UIHOUIIIIIIIIUIItllllltfltllotUUIOIIIIIIUIUIIIUIIOIOUIUtftlltUtUIItl DESCI,;NDANTS 01•' WILLIAM AND AS~ T ,~YLOit • ------------------------~~~~~~~~------~·· unexceptionable character. Given by me at Cully THE DESCENDANTB OF backcy May 28, 17!)9. Robt. Christy, Dep. M"'. \VILLIAM AND ANN TAYLOR * • * • • • Note: Superior numnals are used to <.lenote ~<"ntr:Lticonalnurtd>rr froom \\'ill T hese nrc to certify that the bearer hereof, Ann Tay i:om.' The •·hildren are numbered in the order of their hirth, at1d U tlrJH>t r s ,,.;1th lor, was when she left our bounds, about a year ago, <'h ild ;·.:t, the clev"nth, etc.